To Infinity And Beyond

Yoshi is the Infinite Cat Project's 2007 Christmas Day cat:
http://www.infinitecat.com/infinite/cat-html/1501-1600/1522.html

Questionable Content

A web comic by Jeph Jacques that's been around forever which I just discovered: http://questionablecontent.net/cast.php

Friday Cat Blogging

Yoshi with The Infinite Cat Project in the background.

Yuki in the bathroom sink.

Yoshi

This evening we welcomed a second kitten into our home. Yoshi is a 10-week old marmalade tabby we adopted from Happy Tails. Yoshi is a polydactyl cat, which means he has more than the usual number of toes on both of his front paws due to a cat body type genetic mutation. The more than usual number of toes are harmless.

Our resident kitten, eight-month-old Yuki, hasn't fully accepted Yoshi yet. He growls and hisses, which is normal (according to the information sheet given to us).

UPDATE: All seems well--after watching our neighbor play with Yoshi for some time, Yuki's temperament seems to have transformed from defensive aggressiveness to playful. They chased each other all over the house, with Yoshi finally hiding under our bed to take a nap. Yoshi's playfulness seemed unphased by Yuki's hissing and growling, like a branch bending in the wind and then springing back. It seems obvious to us by his reaction that Yuki's never been in a home with other cats. His origin remains a mystery, but it's equally obvious that he was raised in a loving home.

UPDATE: Day Two--Yuki continues to hiss, one or two almost inaudible growls. Yuki wants to play--he lies on his back and looks at Yoshi.

UPDATE: Day Three--Yuki continues to hiss at times, then hides from Yoshi in a large box, in a drawer, or behind a curtain. We think he's overwhelmed with Yoshi's energy and needs some peace and safety to de-stress. This evening they played together and they're both sitting with us in the office sleeping.

Friday Cat Blogging

Yuki at six months
watching the move-in process
Cat Supervisor

By Joel Hodgson

Cruising the Flickr account of an ILM'er 90 minutes to the west who got a chance to see the worldwide premier of Cinematic Titanic and shoot pics of the cast party afterward, I found this image:



The hilarious bit about Joel's autograph on the book is that Mike Nelson wrote the book and seems to point to the words "By Joel Hodgson." I'm assuming Joel didn't write that--or did he?

California State Personnel Board Written Exam: Associate Programmer Analyst (Specialist)

This afternoon, on my way to the California State Personnel Board Testing Center to take the written exam for the Associate Programmer Analyst (Specialist) position, I watched ice fly off the top of a semi-trailer heading westward toward San Francisco. The sheets of ice, formed during transport through the snow-covered Sierra Nevada mountains, had melted in the warm Central Valley sunshine. Now, with every incline or bump, the sheets broke off, arced into the 65-mph winds, then dashed against the road, shattering into thousands of sparkling shards that rattled in my car's wheel wells as I drove over them. Vehicles in adjoining lanes cautiously passed the trailer as best they could.

I managed to avoid the ice and arrive early, parking at the Westfield Plaza East parking garage, eating a light lunch, reading a book to pass the time, and then walking to the Center. I waited outside with 20 other applicants as maintenance staff cleaned windows. At 12:00, a proctor unlocked the door and we filed in, taking our assigned computers (Dell Optiplex GX260's). At precisely 12:15, the proctor began reading the instructions for the exam. At 12:23, we began the three-hour computer-based, multiple-choice test.

The test consisted of 100 questions divided into three sections, each question paired with four multiple-choice answers. The software is a kiosk-style (menu-less) web browser window. The first section discussed IT questions; the second project management and database questions; the third logic and situational questions. You may check a box next to each question to indicate you'd like to review it after completing. At the end of the exam, the software generates links to these questions and those the candidate left blank. A candidate can submit the test for instant grading at any time.

Test topics included: PERT charts, Gantt charts, critical paths, flat files, primary & foreign keys, logic puzzles, algorithm-evaluation, situational questions, a customer-service question, number sequence puzzles, logical database views, batch processing, real-time processing, parallel processing, multitasking, transaction processing, transactions, records, tables, logical operators, relational operators, system development life cycle models (for example, waterfall, spiral), and so forth, and so forth.

Observations:

• The software provides a final grade--no answers, no statistics. You pass or you fail (70% cut-off).
• Don't be late--the proctor turned away one candidate who arrived at 12:30 due to parking problems.
• The proctor has no experience with the test material to clarify questions.
• Cameras record the candidates. No cheating.
• The proctor allowed me to keep a closed-container of water and a Clif Bar on the desk.
• No keyboard necessary--you're instructed to set it on top of the computer case
• You'll need the candidate ID number issued to you to log-in to the software.
• Overwhelmingly male population. Out of 20, perhaps 5 women.
• One tip: Spinners at the Westfield Plaza Mall near the Center offers parking validation if you buy a coffee.
• I finished in approximately two hours, and spent the remaining 60 minutes reviewing questions I failed to answer or marked for review. I then went through the entire test again one final time.
• The software presents a one-page candidate satisfaction survey at the end to obtain feedback prior to showing your grade.
• The exam software worked well--no bugs.

Opinions/reactions:

• A question on flat-files? Domo arigato Mr. Roboto! Take me back to the 80's.
• Coming from a computer science background I felt rusty on some of the business analyst terminology.
• The design of the web exam software seems like a throwback to the HTML of the mid-nineties. Solidly functional, but dated.
• I mis-interpreted the equality operator ('=') as the assignment operator and botched a question. x_x Too much reading of C code.
• I felt disappointment at not having the option to see which questions I missed--I'd appreciate more transparency. A few questions I had down to one of two choices and I'd like to know what the answers were. Especially the answers to the situational questions, which seem subjective. A call to the Exam Questions line (916-653-1705) revealed, It's a standard exam and we don't allow answer inspections for that.
• The URL http://www.spb.ca.gov/employment/eligible_list_disclosure.cfm on the printed results sheet given to me after the test doesn't work. The URL appears to be http://www.spb.ca.gov/jobs/exams/eligible_list_disclosure.htm.

The State ranks people based on their scores, and hires primarily out of the top three ranks.

To my surprise, I discovered that due to extra points given to veterans or career state employees. The percentages needed to reach the top two ranks are 110% and 105%! Third-rank is 100%, with each rank decreasing by 5%--fourth rank, 95%, fifth rank, 90%, and so forth. x_xI didn't achieve the perfect score necessary to reach third rank, but I'm quite content with the result I achieved.

It appears upon review that the printed results sheet given to me after the test contains a table which indicates rank one and two as 110% and 105%, but in reality rank one seems to be 95%+, rank two seems to be 90%+, and rank three 85%+.

Wishing you success on the exam.

Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum viditur

Another signature seen on comp.programming this evening:

Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum viditur
Translation: Anything in Latin sounds profound

1-800-DEV-NULL

E-mail signature seen on comp.programming:

How's my programming?
Call: 1-800-DEV-NULL

Friday Cat Blogging

Yuki's ears perk up
Birds sing sweetly from high above
Will they come to earth?

David Gustafson, Artist

David Gustafson, one of my former house-mates, has created a new web site to showcase his art:

http://davidgustafsonartist.com/

A long-time resident of Sacramento, California, David moved to Portland, Oregon in early 2007.

I felt a tinge of nostalgia seeing familiar objects in his new residence--a wall hanging, pottery, rugs, and a fern consistently on its last legs of life.

Wishing you success and peace, David.

DawnHustig.surname();

In the event that we get married in the future, Dawn and I have discussed what to do about surnames. Here's a solution that we came up which randomizes which surname to use:

char * DawnHustigSurname::getSurname(void)
{
  int coin_flip=rand()%2;
  int surnameSize=0;
  delete surname;
  if (coin_flip)
  {
    surnameSize=sizeof("Hustig");
    surname = new char[surnameSize+1];
    strncpy(surname,"Hustig",surnameSize);
    surname[surnameSize]="\0";
  }
  else
  {
    surnameSize=sizeof("Schultz");
    surname = new char[surnameSize+1];
    strncpy(surname,"Schultz",surnameSize);
    surname[surnameSize]="\0";
  }
  return surname;
}

Signature:
  DawnHustig.getSurname();

Silliness aside, the dilemma we face is that Hustig isn't a very common last name, so there's some desire on Dawn's part to retain it. No existing solutions that I've seen for retaining surnames seems to work once one takes into consideration what children will do when they marry. For example, it might put a child with surname Schultz-Hustig in a bind when they marry--which surname to retain? People seem to accept the existing system because it's good enough, even though it has flaws (in my opinion).

California Resident

Dawn submitted paperwork at American River College a few weeks back declaring resident status, and yesterday she signed up for Spring classes. Total charge for 14 credits? $250. :)

Friday Cat Blogging

Soft whispers of peace
The cat, long soundly asleep
Dreams of a new friend

Ututo

My first blog post from Ututo.

¡Mi primer poste del blog de Ututo! Woo-hoo!

Bison Americanus

An inside joke. Tim Cummings, this one's for you, wherever you are.

Radio Song

Decatur, Illinois-born Alison Kraus's Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us from her 2007 album Raising Sand (with Robert Plant) on the Rounder Records label. Video.

Friday Cat Blogging

Yuki sleeps.

Meat-Free Haggis!

I've often felt skeptical about foods marketed to vegetarians that look and taste like meat, but this one takes the cake--meat-free haggis! Truth truly is stranger than fiction.

Sacramento-Area Restaurants Open on Thanksgiving

Dawn and I have attended these restaurants' Thanksgiving-day meals in the past:

• Ryde Hotel's Thanksgiving Day Feast
  
• $35/adult
• Beautiful drive along the Delta, a speakeasy-era hotel, wonderful buffet
  
• The Rusty Duck's Turkey Dinner
  
• $21/adult
• Pre-fix dinner, includes sides and dessert, along the American River
  

Other possibilities we haven't visited:

• Plaza Hof Brau's Turkey Dinner
• $10/adult
• Evan's Kitchen
• $19/adult
• Mimi's Cafe (chain)
• ?
  
• Sequoia Placerville
  

Sacramento Magazine's picks.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Fixing P1443

Above: 1996 Ford Escort 1.9L Evaporative Emissions Purge Valve

Several small wins today culminated in a successful replacement of a part that may or may not have contributed to my car exhibiting the P1443 Check Engine code:

• Found the service information for the $25 purge valve part that I researched in my car's service manual. The Helm service manual contains 3,000 pages--it's 3 inches thick and measures a foot on each side. Ford organizes their service manual index by sub-system (for example, Engine, Electrical, Exhaust), which rules out a simple alphabetical search. I finally found it under the Evaporative Emissions (EVAP) section, which makes sense, retrospectively.
• Purchased the part: Brought the service manual with me to NAPA Auto Parts and showed them the part. It turns out I needn't have done that--they have a computer that can look up parts based on the car's year/make/model/engine. They had the appropriate part in stock and I purchased it for $26.
  
• Found the location of the part in the engine compartment. It turns out that the service information for the purge valve states that the part lies beneath another part, the engine air cleaner part. It doesn't list what page the engine air cleaner part is on though. So it's back to the index--is engine air cleaner under Engine? No. Several iterations of this later I discover it under another sub-system whose name escapes me. Perfect. I can't see the part yet, but I know it's under the box containing the air filter, something I have some experience with.
  
• Removed the engine air cleaner part. The engine air cleaner connects to the chassis with two bolts and a retaining nut. It turns out the retaining nut had rusted a bit, and as I loosened it, it made a noise that sounded like something bad was about to happen. I used WD-40 on the bolts and retaining nut to see if it might help. After I removed the other two bolts, I returned to the retaining nut and decided it was now or never, and continued to hear the strange, staccato metal-on-metal noise as I loosened it with a great deal of force. After a few iterations of this it began loosening smoothly--success! The air cleaner removed, I found the purge valve part easily.
• Removed the purge valve. Removing the vacuum tubing from the purge valve represented a new experience for me, and I ended up using pliers to do it since I couldn't get my hands in the right position. A moment of panic struck me as I tore the tubing on one side as I removed it from the purge valve. After a moment of thought, I realized there was enough slack in the vacuum tubing that I might remedy the situation by trimming off the torn section. Whew.
  
• Installed the purge valve. No problem
• Put everything back together again. No problems.

Whether removing the battery ground cable cleared the code, or whether replacing the evaporative emissions purge valve fixed the problem, the Check Engine light no longer displays.

I'll know for sure in another couple weeks whether the fix worked. Until then, everything's running as it did before replacing the part.

For those of you wondering what this little part does--it's part of a sub-system that traps the fuel vapor from the car's gas tank and delivers it to the engine where it's burned off. The valve opens and shuts to allow vapors through. There's another part, the EVAP cannister, that's filled with charcoal that sits between the purge valve and the fuel tank and acts like a odor filter (I think?) . The final part in the sub-system is the EVAP sensor--that's the sensor that trips the Check Engine light when things get out of balance--a plugged/crimped vacuum tube, a faulty purge valve, or a faulty EVAP cannister. Fascinating stuff.

Fixing netselect-apt

netselect-apt efficiently chooses the fastest download mirror for Debian packages out of a list of several hundred mirrors worldwide.

Unfortunately, I noticed after installing a new version of Debian Etch that netselect-apt failed with the message:

netselect was unable to find a mirror, this probably means that
you are behind a firewall and it is blocking traceroute.

It turns out netselect-apt::run_netselect() produces this error when it fails to parse the HTML of the Debian worldwide mirror sites page at http://www.debian.org/mirror/mirrors_full. This page no longer contains \n\n delimiters.

Last week, I resolved the problem by modifying run_netselect() to use "<br><br>" instead (highlighted):

run_netselect()
{
        SEARCH="$1"
    PROTO="$2"
    netselect -v -s 1 $(cat "$infile" \
        | perl -n -e '
            $/="<br><br>";
            while(<>){
              next if $_ !~ /Site:/;
              if( m@'"$SEARCH"':.*<a href="('"$PROTO"'://.*?)">@i ){
                    print("$1\n");
              }
            }') \
        | awk '{print $2}'
}

I also removed the check for Archive Architectures, since the phrase no longer appears on the page.

Also, I noticed after patching netselect-apt that running netselect-apt occasionally fails due to negative values for netselect field host->num_out, but this is a bug for the netselect package, not netselect-apt .

Friday Cat Blogging

After vigorous play-time with sugar snap peas, Yuki rests.

export EDITOR="vim"

Another shell customization--I noticed that my fresh install of Debian etch changed the default editor to nano even after I run the command set -o vi. The fix is the title of this post, via: http://wlug.org.nz/BashNotes.

$/="\n\n";

It took me a while to refresh my memory of Perl to the point where I identified what the title of this post does.

BMR

del.icio.us linked to an article on healthy living today, which linked to a Basal Metabolic Rate calculator.

My results:

1.725						Very Active	Hard exercise or sports 6-7	3,246	(BMR) 3,119 (RMR)
							days a week

Dvorak Zine Comic

Boing Boing linked to a Dvorak Zine comic today. I've used the Dvorak keyboard layout since 2002. Here's how my personal experience compares to claims in the Dvorak Zine Comic:

1. It takes 52 hours to retrain
1. Mostly true--it took me about three eight-hour days, only 24 working hours, before I felt comfortable using Dvorak. I don't remember how long it took to reach my previous typing speed.
2. 50% increased accuracy
1. Somewhat true--although I doubt I've increased by 50%, and I have no data to back this up, I think I'm somewhat more accurate with Dvorak.
3. 20% increased typing speed
1. Somewhat true--I'm a bit faster now compared to QWERTY. I typed pretty fast with QWERTY though.
4. Increased comfort and decreased likelihood of Repetitive Stress Injury (RSI)
1. True--Again anecdotal, but I think I've had fewer RSI issues since I adopted Dvorak.

Your mileage may vary--for me, the main advantages came with increased comfort and reduced RSI, something critical for someone spending 8-10 hours per day writing software.

Some tips if you're willing and able to learn Dvorak:

• Commit to at least three days of learning Dvorak. It will try your patience while you retrain your muscle memory. Emotions may include frustration and fatigue.
• Use Dvorak at home and at work while learning. I've found attempting to use different keyboard layouts during the initial phase counter-productive.
• On Windows: Ctrl-Shift to switch between QWERTY and Dvorak. This isn't well publicized, regrettably.
• Expect to regress to hunt and peck on QWERTY keyboards you encounter in the wild after retraining. E.g., the public library, your friend's home, your significant other's PC, your co-worker's PC, your college computer lab. This is the biggest negative for me. I find I use Dvorak 99% of the time on a computer I have administrative control over, and these 1% cases don't matter much--again, your mileage may vary.

I learned something I didn't know from reading the comic this evening: on Linux, the command to set the keyboard map is: setxkbmap dvorak. Cool!
UPDATE: What I didn't realize until I read through the comments on Boing Boing was how defensive people seem to feel about QWERTY versus Dvorak, probably because they feel judged.

I think until keyboards come with letters that can be easily changed, QWERTY's here to stay.

#include

E-mail signature, seen on NANOG: ^_^

||| email - #include "useless_vendor_certifications.h" |||

Perplexed

Dawn's: ^_^

P1443

One of the joys of driving a 10+ years old Ford Escort LX is that it provides a new learning opportunity every few months.

On Saturday, the Check Engine light came on. This afternoon, I stopped at Napa Auto Parts and purchased a code reader, which returned P1443: Evaporative Emission Control System Control Valve.

One source says nine times out of ten it's a loose gas cap. Another source says it's a $25 purge valve part, and an easy fix. Another: purge flow sensor, canister purge solenoid, or the vacuum lines. Another: damaged/blocked hose(s) between the EVAP canister, purge control valve, purge flow sensor, and intake manifold; a damaged purge control valve or purge flow sensor; or a damaged EVAP canister (least likely cause unless the canister has been cracked or smashed).

P1443 - Very Small Or No Purge Flow Condition.
A fuel tank pressure change greater than a minus (-) 7 inches of H2 O in 30 seconds has occurred with purge (fuel vapor) flow less than 0.02 pounds per minute.
Possible causes:
1)Blocked fuel vapor hose between EVAP canister purge valve and FTP sensor.
2)Blocked fuel vapor hose between EVAP canister purge valve and engine intake manifold.
3)Blocked vacuum hose between EVAP canister purge valve-solenoid and engine intake manifold.
4)EVAP canister purge valve stuck closed (mechanically).
Check for blockages between the fuel tank, EVAP canister purge valve and engine intake manifold. Check obstructions in the EVAP canister purge valve diaphragm and ports.

To be continued

Foliage on Our Property

Asian Pear Tree (fruit: mid-August to late-September)
Apricot Tree (fruit: late-spring to summer)
Kumquat Tree (fruit: late-Autumn to mid-Winter)
Rosemary
Catalpa Tree
Honeysuckle vines
California Laurel
Oleander
Rhododendron
Periwinkle (Vinca)
Fruitless Mulberry

In our neighboring yard:
Mimosa Tree
Alstroemeria (Peruvian Lily)
Almond Tree (2)
Norway Maple Tree

This scratches the surface--our neighbor cultivates many plants native to California. I'll add to the list as I learn more.

Apple Hill Harvest Run

Dawn and I ran in the Apple Hill Harvest Run on Sunday. Lots of fun!

The best part (of course) is the apple pie and other treats to eat in the surrounding area after the event. ;)

Results:

Male 30 to 39
Place Name City Age Overall Time Pace
65 Kevin Schultz Sacramento CA 30 503 1:54:40.0 13:29/M

Measurements

Ring size: 17.6

Found: Cat

Two completely different responses to us attempting to locate the cat's owner.

First, a woman and her boyfriend called us today in response to the found cat ad we placed in the Sacramento Bee. Dawn fielded the first call as I brushed my teeth, and informed her that the cat was a he and not a she as the woman claimed. End of call.

Thirty seconds later, the woman calls back, claiming that her boyfriend thought it was a he while she thought it was a she, and so can they please see the cat in person?

Dawn hands the phone over to me and I talk with her for a while, requesting her to describe specific markings on the cat she lost so I can feel confident that I'm a) not wasting our time meeting in person, and b) not giving the cat to someone who's not the owner.

The back and forth between the two people isn't encouraging. Their cat has four white feet, it likes to sit in people's laps a lot, it sneezes a lot, it's sweet, it's not active, it's 1-2 months old. I tell them this cat doesn't sneeze, ever. Oh, it didn't sneeze that often, every once in a while. I tell them that this cat is active. It doesn't phase them--can't we just meet you in person to see the cat? I ask them to describe distinguish markings on the tail. It might have a bit of white on the tip (it doesn't). I ask them if they have photographs of their cat to share. Photographs! she exclaims, It's only two months old! What day did you lose the cat? Maybe 1-2 weeks ago. Can't we see the cat? *sigh*

She's hysterical that we're not caving in to her (now apparent) demands to show her the cat. I go back to talking with the boyfriend, tell him we'll call him back because I have to take Dawn to class, get his number, and hang-up.

During Dawn's class, I talk with a friend who has significant experience taking care of cats and she lets me know how large a 1-2 month old cat is--it's obvious our cat's not their cat, it's much larger.

Later this evening, we call them back after running errands. They're not home. I leave them a message letting them know that the cat we have can't possibly be their cat because it's obviously not 1-2 months old, and we're not interested in showing them the cat.

We leave to go to the gym and when we return we find a message on our machine from this woman stating, Hi, this is --- responding to your call about the cat. I don't care about you adopting the cat, I just need to know where it is! I don't know what planet you're from, but when you put an ad in the paper that describes my cat perfectly.... and then it cuts off, end of message.

Ok, obviously I'm not calling her back, ever. Yeesh!

This is the text of the ad in the paper: Found: Cat gray and white, near --- and ---. . Yep. Perfectly, just like the five million other gray and white cats in California.

Second, we saw a lost cat paper pie plate ad on a pole near our house and called the number. The man who answered the phone was the nicest guy, humorous, and after a few questions it was obvious it wasn't his cat that we had found. $50 reward if you do find it! he said. Complete 180-degree response from our encounter above.

Kitten

A cat literally walked into our arms two nights ago. We've wanted to adopt two cats since we moved into our duplex so this represented a bit of an early surprise for us.

We arrived home from the gym at 00:10 on Thursday. Remembering our landlord's encounter with a friendly kitten earlier in the day, we walked to the end of the driveway in search of it. Finding nothing, we walked back to where we had left our gym bags on the front walk. We continued talking as we walked toward the front door when we thought we heard a mew. We stopped, and I walked back toward our garage, calling out to any potential kitten. Mew. Mew. Was the sound coming from our backyard? I opened the gate and out trotted a kitten, maybe four months old. Dawn and I stood still as it walked around us, peering into the bushes, sitting on it's haunches. We whispered to it, and it padded to us. Dawn picked it up and held it, and we scratched it's white coat. It ground it's nose into Dawn's arm for warmth.

Dawn took the cat inside and I went off in search of cat litter and a litter box. Wal-Mart: closed. Where in the world to find cat litter after midnight? I began heading toward a 24-hour pharmacy in our old neighborhood. After a few blocks, I passed an all-night emergency pet clinic. Doubling back, I parked, walked into the security entrance, and got the information I needed from the attendants on duty. About 45 minutes later, I returned home from a closer 24-hour pharmacy with the litter and box.

After putting out water, cat food, and litter in the box, I searched for lost cat ads in the local zip code at five online sites, posting a found cat ad at each. I searched for what to do when you find a stray cat. It had no collar, it was healthy, friendly and not feral. We determined it was either lost or abandoned. The lack of collar indicated the latter.

It was about 3AM when we finally fell asleep. My first bit of late-night parenting. The kitten climbed into bed and slept between us.

It's been several days since posting the ads (including the Sacramento Bee and Craigslist) and flyers on our street. No word yet, so we're beginning to gear up for adopting the kitten, which includes a visit to the vet next week.

Best Kitchen Equipment

My grandma gave me a book entitled, Perfect Vegetables in August--a bunch of crazy and brilliant people cooked vegetables in every conceivable way to discover the best (and often, the most efficient) ways to prepare them.

In subsections throughout the book, they list their favorite kitchen equipment (listing here for convenience):

• Food mill: Moulinex ($15)
• Chef knives: Forschner (Victorinox) Fibrox ($30), Henckels Four Star, Wusthof-Trident Grand Prix (~$80)
  
• Inexpensive Balsamic Vinegar: 365 Every Day Value, Masserie Di Sant'Eramo, Fiorucci Riserva
• Jarred roasted red peppers: Divina peppers, Greek Gourmet peppers
• Cheese grater: Microplane grater
• Salad spinners: Oxo Good Grips ($26), Zyliss Salad Spinner ($21)
• Gratin dishes: Pyrex casserole dish
• Cutting boards: plastic boards
• Inexpensive nonstick skillets: Farberware Millenium 18/10 Stainless Steel 12-Inch Nonstick Skillet ($30)
• Vegetable peelers: Oxo Good Grips Peeler, Kuhn Rikon Peeler (wide strips good for celery root or winter squash)
• Supermarket Extra-Virgin Olive Oils: Davinci Extra-Virgin Olive Oil (best all-purpose), Pompeian Extra-Virgin Olive Oil (best mild oil), Colavita Extra-Virgin Olive Oil (best full-bodied oil)
• Herb choppers: generic single-bladed, two-handed mezzaluna represents only real alternative to chef's knife.
• Pepper mills: Unicorn Magnum Plus (huge capacity, awesome speed), East Hampton Industries Peppermate (detachable cup for measuring)
• Garlic presses: Zyliss press
• Vermouth: Gallo Extra Dry Vermouth (floral, fruity), Noilly Prat Original French Dry Vermouth (honeyed, herbaceous, woodsy)
• 3-4 quart Large saucepans: All-Clad ($140, but lacked rolled lips), Calphalon ($110, but heavy), KitchenAid ($119, but relatively short curved handle)
• Dutch Ovens: 8-quart All-Clad Stainless Stockpot ($150), 7-quart Le Creuset Round French Oven ($150), 7-quart Lodge Dutch Oven (cast-iron, $45).
• Grill tongs: Amco 16-inch stainless-steel kitchen tongs
• Canned tomatoes: Muir Glen diced tomatoes (packed in juice, not puree)
• Colander: Endurance Colander/Strainer
• Soy Sauce: Eden Selected Shoyu Soy Sauce (toasty, caramely, complex)
• Paring Knives: Wusthof-Trident Grand Prix ($28), Forschner (Victorinox) Fibrox ($6), Henckels Four Star ($20)
• Mayonnaises: Hellmann's (known as Best Foods, west of the Rockies) and Hellmann's Light
• Red wine vinegars: Pompeian vinegar, Spectrum vinegar
• Mandolines and V-Slicers: Progressive and Target slicers ($10, plastic V-Slicers), Bron-Coucke ($99, best classic mandoline)
• Black pepper: McCormick Whole Black Peppercorns (not in plastic bottle; sold as Schilling on the West Coast)
• Potato mashers: Profi Plus Masher ($16, silky spuds with little effort)
• Best large skillets: All-Clad Stainless 12-Inch Frypan (best overall); best-buys: Calphalon Tri-Ply Stainless 12-Inch Omelette Pan, Farberware Millenium 18/10 Stainless Steel 12-Inch Covered Skillet
• Dried pasta: Ronzoni (top finisher), DeCecco (best Italian pasta)
  
• Commercial chicken broths: Swanson Chicken Broth (and reduced-sodium). Broth in aseptic packaging tastes better than canned.
• Commercial vegetable broth: Swanson vegetable broth

KYDS Song

East London/Essex-based Bloc Party's She's Hearing Voices from their 2004 EP Banquet on the V2/Dim Mak Records labels. Video.

Hanging Flower Baskets

Ideas for flowers from Windmill Nursery in Carmichael:

• Cape Daisy 'Soprano' Compact Purple
• Diascia
• Nemesia
• Bacoba
• Pansys
• Dichondra Silver Falls
• Million Bells
• Dianthis
• Sedum Angelina

One example by Andrew, the owner.

We also enjoyed the Blue Glorybower tree, Arabian lilac, Ruby Sky Cornflower, and Big Sky Cornflower.

Also: Cape Daisy Lemon Symphony/Orange Symphony/Soprano White; Evergold ($6); Festival Grass ($25)

Ten Tips on Using Sect of Homokaasu's Rasterbator

In a previous post I showed an image of our completed wall art. I've compiled some tips to help anyone who wants to get the same results themselves:

1. Use a printer capable of borderless printing. My Canon PIXMA MP160 can do this only with a stiff paper (like the matte photo paper I used). Otherwise you're stuck with thin white margins on each panel-sheet.
2. Use a laser printer if financially possible. Looking back I regret not choosing a laser printer. I chose to use the Canon PIXMA MP160 because I didn't know how financially efficient it was. After printing 60 sheets and going through two color cartridges, the total cost came out to ~$60 ($28/each + tax). That's $1/sheet. If you can purchase comparably-priced color printing at a copy shop, do so. You won't have to worry about liquids dissolving the water-soluble ink used in inkjet cartridges. You'll probably have to request printing each 8.5"x11" panel-sheet on a 11"x17" sheet and then cutting it to size (full-bleed).
3. Don't use masking tape to stabilize the panels on the wall (in addition to a foam core hanger). I didn't think about this until after I finished, when my understanding property manager informed me that masking tape only comes off easily from the wall when it's fresh. When masking tape sits for a while, it bonds with the paint/wall and becomes difficult to remove. x_x An efficient alternative solution--use two hangers on the back of each board instead of one.
4. Use double-sided tape and affix it about 1/4" inside the edge of the paper. First, double-sided tape versus adhesive spray--we used adhesive spray on a trial project and noticed the edges didn't stick very well to the posterboard. We also noticed the over-spray left a bit of a tack on our fingers, and we didn't want any of that getting onto the panel-sheets. x_x Your mileage may vary. Second, don't attempt to affix the double-sided tape right on the edge of the panel-sheet. We found affixing the tape about 1/4" inside the edge of the paper much more forgiving. Start in a corner, dispense about three inches, press it into place, then repeat until done with the side. Dispensing anything longer than that and you risk the tape clinging in the wrong place--resulting in torn paper as you attempt to remove it and reaffix it. x_x
5. Use a spreadsheet to calculate the locations of the nails. I used this Microsoft Excel spreadsheet to calculate the hole locations. Feel free to use it and modify it to your specifications.
   
6. Mark center location of each foam-core panel. Based on a suggestion from an artist, we found the center of each panel by drawing two diagonal lines (between opposite corners) using a straight edge. Where they intersect represents the center. More efficient than measuring. I placed each foam-core hanger here to ensure the foam-core panels hung consistently.
   
7. Mark holes vertically first, then mark each row horizontally. With the help of a laser level and a tape measure, we marked the height of each row. Then, marking the distance between the nails onto a sheet of paper (since it was only 9.5") we used that instead of the awkward and inconsistent tape measure to mark the location of the horizontal nails in each row. We used a laser level and made a pencil mark every 9.5" according to the sheet of paper. Do this for each row--much, much more efficient than measuring each hole manually.
8. Number each sheet and foam-core panel. We had 60 panels, and we found it confusing to know how to orient them and in which order to place them. To simplify things, we laid out the panels on the floor to put together the image, then stacked them, numbering each one lightly on the back (consistently in the same corner). You can also do this as you print them. After using tape to affix the panel-sheets to the foam-core panels, re-number them consistently in the same corner to ensure correct orientation on the wall.
9. Use masking tape to outline the placement of the artwork on the wall before nailing. We didn't know quite where to place it on our wall until we used masking tape to get a visual idea of how big it really was. We weren't sure how to center it horizontally and vertically, but after affixing the tape-frame to the wall, we came up with our decision relatively quickly. The laser level once again helps with placement of the tape.
   
10. Take precautions if placing artwork in high-traffic areas. Will wind blow your 60 carefully-leveled pictures askew? Will your kitten find the low-hanging foam-core boards a lovely new scratching post? Will you feel paranoid about bumping and damaging the panels each time you pass them? We solved these problems on the fly with a loop of masking tape on the back of each panel and raising the panels a bit higher. Take your time, think things through, then affix the panels.
    

Katsushika Hokusai's The Great Wave Off Kanagawa (1831)

From the New York City Metropolitan Museum of Art:

The Great Wave at Kanagawa (from a Series of Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji), Edo period (1615–1868), ca. 1830–32
Katsushika Hokusai (Japanese, 1760–1849)
Japan
Polychrome woodblock print; ink and color on paper; 10 1/8 x 14 15/16 in. (25.7 x 37.9 cm)
H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929 (JP1847)

Description

The preeminence of this print—said to have inspired both Debussy's "La Mer" and Rilke's "Der Berg"—can be attributed, in addition to its sheer graphic beauty, to the compelling force of the contrast between the wave and the mountain. The turbulent wave seems to tower above the viewer, whereas the tiny stable pyramid of Mount Fuji sits in the distance. The eternal mountain is envisioned in a single moment frozen in time. Hokusai characteristically cast a traditional theme in a novel interpretation. In the traditional "meisho-e" (scene of a famous place), Mount Fuji was always the focus of the composition. Hokusai inventively inverted this formula and positioned a small Mount Fuji within the midst of a thundering seascape. Foundering among the great waves are three boats thought to be barges conveying fish from the southern islands of Edo (modern Tokyo). Thus a scene of everyday labor is grafted onto the seascape view of the mountain.

Tools used:

• Sect of Homokaasu's online The Rasterbator (creates PDF from source image)
• 60 8.5"x11" foam-core boards (eBay)
• 60 8.5"x11" Canon MP-101 matte photo paper sheets
• Canon Pixma MP160 Multifunction Printer (used two color cartridges on this project)
  
• 2,340" of 1/2" double-sided tape (holds photo paper to foam-core boards)
• 60 foam-core board hangers (Abreu Gallery)
  
• 60 picture nails & hammer
• Ryobi AirGrip Laser Level
• One roll of masking tape (holds foam-core boards in place on wall)
• Rubbermaid 3-Step Project Ladder

UPDATE:



A pic with IKEA Sansa low-voltage halogen track lighting system.

Cooking In the Backyard

Local organization Solar Cookers International make ovens that cook food in the backyard without using gas or electricity! Very efficient financially, but I'm not so sure about how efficient it is with respect to time.

The organization advocates for use of the cookers in areas where gathering scarce wood for cooking fuel represents a time-consuming source of labor. They also advocate cooking with the sun to pasteurize water. Clever!

Link: http://solarcookers.org/

Yallavva

Meet Yallavva. She lives in India, in the Bijapur district of the southern state of Karnataka, tahsil (county) Basavana-Bagevadi, in the community of Devalapur. She speaks Kannada, a Dravidian language, and I assume she also speaks Hindi, an Indo-European language. Hindu represents her families religion.

Born in 1995, she does not celebrate her exact date of birth, as is custom in her culture.


Her father Mariyappa (born 1960). I have never seen photos of her mother Durugavva (born 1965) or her brother Parashuram (born 2000). Both parents work as laborers. You can see their home behind them--crafted from stone with a corrugated metal roof.

Though she's healthy, Yallavva currently does not attend school due to economic conditions caused by poor rainfall in the last year. Her family receives water from a borehole operated by an electric pump year-round.

She's wearing her best dress and her nicest bracelets, necklace, earrings, and nose ring. Her hair looks neatly combed and tied back. She wears no shoes, as is customary.

I support Yallavva and her community through Plan.

Opting Out

From FindLaw:

For instance, as early as 1970, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Rowan v. United States Postal Service that a government regulation allowing citizens the choice to refuse to receive unwanted commercial mail was constitutional, despite a First Amendment challenge, for it protects individual privacy. As a result, a consumer has the right to affirmatively go to the United States Post Office, fill out a form and to ask never to receive unsolicited mail from a particular marketer.

This evening I called Comcast to opt-out of receiving their commercial postal mailings, and the representative informed me that I'd have to "throw it away"--they don't have a way for people to opt-out of their mailings.

I began this journey to become free of unsolicited postal mail after reading the inspirational story of local resident Matt Conens in the Sacramento News and Review. The article lists 41 Pounds and Green Dimes as two companies which help stamp out unsolicited postal mail.

According to Wikipedia, the USPS uses junk mail revenues to subsidize low-cost stamps for letters. So, in theory, the effect of eliminating junk mail on a wide scale might be the increase of stamp prices.

Junkbusters also exists as a helpful starting point. They note:

A U.S. Federal law gives you the power to stop any non-governmental organization from sending you further mail. You can download a copy or Form 1500 or ask for a copy to be mailed to you by telephoning a major Post Office in your area. Fill it out (it's very short), attach it to one of their opened letters, and lodge it at any Post Office. The form was originally intended to stop pornographic junk mail, but the Supreme Court of the United States has affirmed your right to stop any mail that you don't want. If the company continues to send you mail or sell your name they risk being prosecuted as criminals. Burnett comments that with this move ``name removal is virtually assured.'' (They will still store your name in their databases, but they are unlikely to continue renting it.)

This evening, I ordered the Green Dimes kit, paid the $1 to the DMA to have them remove my address, submitted my info to https://www.optoutprescreen.com/ and geared up to swat down local junk mailers with USPS Form 1500.

Wishing you a junk-mail-free existance!

Others:

• http://phonezilla.net/permanent/form1500.php
• http://www.planetmike.com/journal/category/advertising/junkmail/
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=794wbpg7A3Y
  

Leibniz Named Calculus

A simple question: Where did the name calculus come from?

It took us about 45 minutes to find the answer this evening. Apparently Leibniz came up with the word calculus in conjunction with various suffix words to describe the new concepts he had worked out:

calculus differentialis became the method for finding tangents and the calculus summatorius or calculus integralis the method for finding areas.

The etymology of calculus comes from the Latin calx meaning stone. The diminutive, calculi, indicates tiny stones, which people used for counting purposes. The words calculation thus came about to describe all manners of addition, subtraction, and so forth. Leibniz apparently chose the word calculus to describe a new manner of counting to arrive at solutions to problems. He used the phrases in his works published in 1684 and 1686.

Link:
http://www.math10.com/en/maths-history/history5/origins-differential-integral2.html
http://www-history.mcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/PrintHT/The_rise_of_calculus.html

Annie

Coming home from the gym Saturday night Dawn and I caught two songs from the original Broadway recording of Annie on Capitol Public Radio 88.9. Wonderful, one of my favorites.

Running Journal, Monday, 2007-07-30

Running Journal, Monday, 2007-07-30
Resting heart rate: n/a
Body Mass Index (BMI): (kilograms/(meters^2))
Weather: n/a
Temp: n/a
Time: 08:10-09:00
Terrain: flat

Comments: Treadmill exercise at the California Family Fitness gym at I-80 and Madison. Watched Pokemon and Ben 10.
Exercise Time: 45 minutes

Goal Time: n/a
Distance (running): 6.03 km (4.25 mi)
Total Running Distance For Year: 742.55 km (472.95 mi)
Weight (after exercise): 81.63 kg (180 lbs), 16% body fat
Any irregular feelings, aches, pains, heart rate, and so forth?: none

SomaFM Songs

San Rafael-based Two Seconds' Make A Run For It from their 2007 album Until We're Legal on the Popsmear Records label. Available on iTunes.

Seattle-based The Lashes' New Best Friend from their 2006 album Get It on the Red Ink label.

Bertrand Russell For Teh Win!!!

Late night silliness with Dawn :)

SomaFM Songs

Los Angeles-based Shiloe's The Rat from--their 2006 EP Please Remove Your Teeth From My Neck, distributed independently.

SomaFM Songs

June of 44's Doomsday from their 1998 album Four Great Points on the Quarterstick Records label. Math rock! ^_^

Tucson-based Calexico's Quattro from their 2003 album Feast of Wire on the Quarterstick Records label. Great guitar instrumentals.

Glasgow, Scotland-based Camera Obscura's Lloyd, I'm Ready to Be Heartbroken from their 2006 album Let's Get Out Of This Country on the Merge label. Female pop! :) Video.

Brighton, UK-based The Kooks' She Moves In Her Own Way from their 2006 album Inside In/Inside Out on the Virgin Records label.

I also heard Teddy Thompson on NPR's Fresh Air on July 18. What a voice!

SunRocket Member Bill of Rights

The founders of SunRocket moved on earlier this year and Ms. Hook took over the helm. SunRocket has a "Member Bill of Rights" page that states:

Dignity & Respect: You will be treated with the utmost dignity and respect in all dealings with SunRocket and company personnel.

Integrity & Trust: We endeavor to fully inform you of available options so you can make timely and informed choices. We will never abuse your trust through deceit, exploitation, neglect, manipulation, or discrimination

Goes to show the words in the contract only matter how well people adhere to them on any given day!

Original story

SunRocket VoIP Shuts Down Service

SunRocket Voice-Over-Internet phone service closed shop this afternoon. I began subscribing to SunRocket in 2005--I only wish they might have delayed the end until mid-August, when we finish moving! :)

Overall I found SunRocket's quality so-so, and the cost savings so-so. The service cost less--but I ended up paying more for bandwidth. Numerous people mentioned the cell-phone-like signal quality. I really enjoyed using SunRocket's web interface though--checking voice-mail anywhere, checking phone records, and so forth. SunRocket also provided a lot of extras--for free! Caller ID, voice-mail, call forwarding, call blocking, for example.

Happily, I'm moving to a location with fiber-optic internet and phone in a few weeks! :)

Regrettably, SunRocket failed to notify any customers in advance--so this afternoon the phone went dead as Dawn used it. We had advance notice of the impending closure due to rumors posted at dslreports.com over the weekend--but I'm feeling disappointment at the leaders' failure to exit gracefully.

Password Requirements

I've noticed this past month that some web sites enforce insecure passwords--even financial web sites!

Bruce Schneier writes about choosing an appropriately secure password here, capturing what the latest and greatest password crackers check for.

Some web sites fail to allow secure passwords for one of the following technical reasons:

• Only accept alpha-numeric passwords
• Passwords limited to x digits

Lame!

Running Journal, Thursday, 2007-07-05

Running Journal, Thursday, 2007-07-05
Resting heart rate: n/a
Body Mass Index (BMI): (kilograms/(meters^2))
Weather: n/a
Temp: n/a
Time: 18:45-19:35
Terrain: flat

Comments: Treadmill exercise at the California Family Fitness gym at I-80 and Madison. Watched the end of a recent (2006) Ethics In America II, Choosing Justice: Elections and Judicial Independence. Then I caught the end of Class of 3000--a hilarious episode filled with fantastic plots like a Ren-fair crowd attacking a school. Lots of fun one-liners. I used my upper legs a lot on this run--no knee weirdness!
Exercise Time: 45 minutes

Goal Time: n/a
Distance (running): 6.03 km (3.75 mi)
Total Running Distance For Year: 736.52 km (468.70 mi)
Weight (after exercise): 80.73 kg (178 lbs), 16% body fat
Any irregular feelings, aches, pains, heart rate, and so forth?: none! :)

Secondary Car Purchase Update

Dawn and I have investigated the purchase of a second daily driver car for some time as our primary car gets up in mileage (160K+). I figure better to stay ahead of the curve in case this car breaks down.

I've spent the last few days researching used cars in the range of 1999-2005, which seems to represent the price range we can afford right now. Top considerations (in order):

1. Safety
2. Reliability
3. Insurance cost
   
4. Looks
   

I first visited the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which operates SafeCar.gov. SafeCar reports driver/passenger frontal and side impact assessments, as well as rollover assessments. Next, I visited the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) which reports similar information on impact ratings.

For local and national pricing information, I relied on Edmunds.com and their partner site, autotrader.com.

For reliability information, I visited MSN Autos which lists reliability for the current and previous years in a table.

And I enjoyed reading Samarins for used-car buying information (and reviews).

Initial picks (in no particular order, in the range of 2000-2005):

• Volkswagen Golf
  
• Five-star frontal- and four-star side-impact safety ratings from NHTSA, reliability seems pretty good.
• Honda Civic
• Nothing really needs to be said that hasn't already been said--great safety ratings and reliability.
  
• Dodge Neon SRT
• Vroom-vroom! ;)
  
• Honda Accord

I've said since college that I planned to purchase a low-emissions vehicle as my next car purchase. I still want to make that a reality--and the later-years Toyota Prius seems the likely bet, if I can afford one!

Running Journal, Tuesday, 2007-07-03

Running Journal, Tuesday, 2007-07-03
Resting heart rate: n/a
Body Mass Index (BMI): (kilograms/(meters^2))
Weather: n/a
Temp: n/a
Time: 18:35-19:15
Terrain: flat

Comments: Treadmill exercise at the California Family Fitness gym at I-80 and Madison. Watched more of Code Lyoko. First time running in about 11 days!
Exercise Time: 40 minutes

Goal Time: n/a
Distance (running): 5.36 km (3.33 mi)
Total Running Distance For Year: 730.49 km (464.95 mi)
Weight (after exercise): 79.83 kg (176 lbs), 16% body fat
Any irregular feelings, aches, pains, heart rate, and so forth?: right knee felt a bit tender afterward

Soma FM Songs

Sorel, Quebec-based Malajube's Le Crabe from their 2006 album Trompe-l'oeil on the Dare to Care Records label.

Chichester, West Sussex, UK-native Antony and the Johnson's Free At Last from their 2005 album I Am a Bird Now on the Secretly Canadian label.

New York City-natives The Natural History's Telling Lies Will Get You Nowhere from their 2003 album Beat Beat Heartbeat on the Startime International label.

Portland, Oregon-based The Shins' Reb Rabbits from their 2007 album Wincing the Night Away on the Sub Pop/Transgressive labels.

Glasgow, Scotland-based The Fratellis' Flathead from their 2006 album Costello Music on the Drop the Gun Recordings label.

Happy Canada Day!

The Logdriver's Waltz. ;) I'm told this flushes Canidians out of the crowd. ;)

Forbidden Zone

Watched this cult movie yesterday--overwhelming.

I enjoyed Marie Pascale-Elfman's facial expressions as Frenchy as she hams it up! ^_^

KYDS Songs

Essex, UK-based Gorillaz' Tomorrow Comes Today from their 2000 album Tomorrow Comes Today on the Parlophone label. Video.

Los Angeles-based Silversun Pickups' Well Thought Out Twinkles from their 2006 album Carnavas on the Dangerbirds Records label. Video. I heard this yesterday and today when I heard it again I didn't enjoy it quite as much, but I enjoy the guitar-work at the ending!

I heard this one on Soma FM's Indie pop rocks! :

Athens, GA-natives Elf Power's O What A Beautiful Dream from their 1998 album A Dream In Sound on the Arena Rock Recording Co. label.

Austin, TX-natives ...And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead's The Best from their 2004 album Worlds Apart on the Interscope Records label. Kind of loses me after the intro but I like the driving guitars!

Liverpool, UK-based Clinic's Harmony, from their 2002 album Walking With Thee on the Domino Records label. Mix of meloncholy and sort of dark.

Radio Songs

Heard today on Soundscapes:

Boston-native Suzanne Ciani's The Velocity of Love from her 1985 album The Velocity of Love on the RCA label. Audio (accompanies video)

Swansea, Wales-native Karl Jenkins' Adiemus from his 1995 album Adiemus on the Jenkins Ratledge label. Audio (accompanying video)

Running Journal, Thursday, 2007-06-21

Running Journal, Thursday, 2007-06-21
Resting heart rate: n/a
Body Mass Index (BMI): (kilograms/(meters^2))
Weather: n/a
Temp: n/a
Time: 21:15-22:10
Terrain: intervals

Comments: Treadmill exercise at the California Family Fitness gym at I-80 and Madison. Felt hungry!
Exercise Time: 55 minutes

Goal Time: n/a
Distance (running): 7.74 km (4.81 mi)
Total Running Distance For Year: 725.13 km (461.62 mi)
Weight (after exercise): 78.4 kg (172.87 lbs), 16% body fat
Any irregular feelings, aches, pains, heart rate, and so forth?: none
Foods eaten today:

Running Journal, Tuesday, 2007-06-19

Running Journal, Tuesday, 2007-06-19
Resting heart rate: n/a
Body Mass Index (BMI): (kilograms/(meters^2))
Weather: n/a
Temp: n/a
Time: 19:00-21:00
Terrain: flat

Comments: During Dawn's class I headed over to the California Family Fitness gym at I-80 and Madison for the first time. I watched Code Lyoko (#68) and Pokemon: Diamond and Pearl. The treadmill I used seemed to have problems maintaining a smooth transition or even a current speed. I like the other gym better.
Exercise Time: 120 minutes

Goal Time: none
Distance (running): 16.09 km (10.0 mi)
Total Running Distance For Year: 717.39 km (456.81 mi)
Weight (after exercise): 78.4 kg (172.87 lbs), 16% body fat
Any irregular feelings, aches, pains, heart rate, and so forth?: None
Foods eaten today:

Wedding Congrats

To my cousin Lynsi who married in Wisconsin today. Congratulations!

Rolling Rolling Rolling

I rolled down a grass hill today for the first time since...well.... My stomach felt queasy for about 30 minutes after but I loved it. Itchy.

During a search for someone rolling down a hill I encountered the Gloucestershire Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake. Video. Intense.

Weird Al In Concert: Stockton

Dawn and I traveled to the San Joaquin County Fair on Friday to see Weird Al. Sat down in great seats (free admission after paying Fair entrance price of $8) around 5:45 with umbrella for shade, plenty of water, funnel cake, lemonade, and Clif bars. The place filled up completely by showtime.

Sequence:

1. Intro--Fun Zone (song)
2. Live action video sequence on tri-screen
3. Polkarama! from Straight Outta Lynwood (bubbles screensaver video on tri-screen, black shirt and pants with red tie)
4. Canadian Idiot from Straight Outta Lynwood (maple leaf screensaver video and nuclear explosion on tri-screen at end of song; exploding streamers into crowd timed with bomb)
5. Drum solo--drummer hits drum once
6. Close But No Cigar from Straight Outta Lynwood (loses red tie, wears hat, plays vibraslap)
7. Why Does This Always Happen To Me? from Poodle Hat (loses hat; gets drink and reads paper during bridge)
8. Jessica Simpson interview from Weird Al TV on tri-screen
9. It's All About The Pentiums from Running With Scissors (outfit from video; band members have white shirts and black ties; sparkly screensaver video on tri-screen)
10. Mariah Carey interview from Weird Al TV; Celine Dion interview from Weird Al TV; Crimes of Carelessness retro movie short on tri-screen
11. You're Pitiful exclusive online single (Al starts with black coat and pants and rips off sequence of clothing: removing black coat reveals gold sequin shirt; removing gold sequin shirt reveals white tee with red accordion; removing accordion tee reveals yellow Atlantic Records Sucks tee; removing Atlantic Records Sucks tee reveals white Spongebob Squarepants tee; removing black pants reveals pink tutu over white boxers with red hearts)
12. Madonna interview from Weird Al TV; Weird Al TV sketch of Al throwing fruit off of high building
13. Wanna B Ur Lovr from Poodle Hat (red suit with black and white tie; Al went into the crowd and up and down the aisles)
14. Eminem interview from Weird Al TV
15. Begins song medley:
1. Couch Potato from Poodle Hat (red hoodie and blue coat with blue shorts)
2. Do I Creep You Out? from Straight Outta Lynwood (loses blue coat and red hoodie, revealing red shirt)
3. I'm In Love With The Skipper exclusive live medley song (puts on white hat with red shirt; Gilligan video on tri-screen)
4. Headline News from Permanent Record: Al In The Box (loses red shirt and hat revealing ?)
5. Confessions Part III from Straight Outta Lynwood
6. A Complicated Story from Poodle Hat
7. eBay from Poodle Hat
8. Bedrock Anthem from Alapalooza (Flintstones video on tri-screen)
9. Ode To A Superhero from Poodle Hat (plays accordion and harmonica)
10. Pretty Fly For A Rabbi from Running With Scissors
11. Trapped In The Drive-Thru from Straight Outta Lynwood (song video animation on tri-screen; Weird Al interrupts and says No need to play this song; radio radio)
12. Radio, Radio a "rescue" song that seems to be a rip off of Elvis Costello's SNL performance. Forum discussion.
13. Gump from Bad Hair Day (Forrest Gump on tri-screen)
14. Eat It from In 3-D (puts on red jacket)
16. Sexiest video sequence from Weird Al TV; Keith Richards interview from Weird Al TV; Gandhi II from UHF--on tri-screen
17. I'll Sue Ya from Straight Outta Lynwood (dreads, camo jacket with red star on arm; green smoke screensaver on tri-screen; song ends with explosion of money confetti (Yanko Dollars) over the crowd)
18. Paul McCartney interview from Weird Al TV; King of the Hill cartoon bit featuring Al reference; Snoop Dog interview from Weird Al TV; Leslie Nielsen bit featuring Al from The Naked Gun
19. The Saga Begins from Running With Scissors (robes outfit from video)
20. Yoda from Dare To Be Stupid (ragtime piano intro; bubble screensaver video on tri-screen; removes brown robe; Yoda Chant half-way through, then finishes)
21. Cher interview from Weird Al TV; Barber video from Weird Al TV; Justin Timberlake interview from Weird Al TV
22. Weasel Stomping Day video on tri-screen from Straight Outta Lynwood
23. Smells Like Nirvana from Off The Deep End (Kurt Kobain wig, black short-sleeved tee with yellow stripes over white long-sleeved tee; song video playing on tri-screen; two cheerleaders in black outfits with red poms upstage; gargles water and throws rest of water in cup on front rows)
24. Michael Stipe interview from Weird Al TV; cartoon; Avril Lavigne interview from Weird Al TV
25. Amish Paradise from Bad Hair Day (song video costumes; video on tri-screen)
26. Kevin Federline interview from Weird Al TV
27. White & Nerdy from Straight Outta Lynwood (enters on Segway, black hoodie with "White & Nerdy" in red letters, silver sparkly chain)
28. Weird AL changes his look segment from Weird Al TV--plays Unplugged
29. Fat from Even Worse (black fat suit with red belts, grommets, silver chains; says Hoe! and stage manager comes out with hoe, wearing skirt and platinum wig--lifts up skirt as exits stage)
30. Encore: We All Have Cell Phones, So C'Mon Let's Get Real exclusive live single from Weird Al TV Michael Stipe interview
31. Albuquerque from Running With Scissors (red, yellow, and blue pattern shirt, black pants; words of final bits on tri-screen; explosions of small confetti squares over the crowd at the end)

Show lasted from 8:32-10:47 (scheduled start was 8PM but technical problems with projectors delayed the start)

Great show.

Songs by album:

Straight Outta Lynwood: 9
Poodle Hat: 6
Running With Scissors: 4
Dare To Be Stupid: 1
Alapalooza: 1
Bad Hair Day: 2
In 3-D: 1
Off The Deep End: 1
Unreleased songs: 6
Total songs: 31

Al didn't come out for autographs after the show, though a crowd of about thirty or more waited for about 15 minutes. The bassist came out and broke the news.