Pen tablets and :CueCats

I broke down and bought a pen tablet. I have a very old Wacom 4x5, but wanted something a little bit bigger. I would love to have another Wacom, but at well over $200 on sale, that isn't going to happen any time soon.


I ended up getting a Genius Mousepen 8x6. It isn't a Wacom, but for $50, it's plenty good enough. I spent about ten minutes installing software and setting up — that could have been cut to five minutes if I'd bothered to read the instructions, but so what. It's going to be a handy tool for me and I'm looking forward to doing some real illustration using a pen instead of my beloved Microsoft trackball.

Speaking of the trackball, I wish someone at Microsoft would get a clue and start making these again. You can buy them on eBay, but they usually go for about $100 used, and closer to $200 new. The fit for my crooked mangled hands could not be better.

Today's mail brought me a :CueCat. Remember when these were given away at Radio Shack? The downside then was that the software was essentially spyware and compromised any security you might have thought you had on your computer. These days, they've been hacked and reconfigured to be a basic barcode scanner. I plugged it in, waited about thirty seconds for the driver to load, and scanned a few things into a text editor. It worked perfectly. Why would I want one? Because I have at least a thousand books I can catalog, several hundred CDs and a hundred or so DVDs. By scanning the barcode, I can create a database of my library and not have to type it all in one piece at a time. Woohoo!!

Owl Prowl

I signed up for the MA Audubon Society's Snowy Owl Prowl on Duxbury Beach, and today was the day. Unfortunately, I made a right turn where I should have made a left and ended up getting about halfway across the Powder Point Bridge just as the van was leaving the parking area. This is a problem because without a permit, you can't drive along the beach. I decided to start walking.


View Larger Map

Twice I almost caught up to the van, but twice they pulled away. I kept walking. I ended up walking almost down to the point, close to three miles, when I decided that the shoes I had worn were not made for walking. By that time I had spotted the lone Snowy Owl at Duxbury that day.

Snowy Owls summer in the arctic and are diurnal ground owls. They don't perch in trees, or high above the ground. Rather, they sit on the ground and wait for prey to appear. They also catch fish when the fish are near the water's surface. It was far too windy for fishing this day, the water was all waves and whitecaps, so the Snowy Owl was on the ground. The dunes resemble the summer tundra and provide a good winter location, so Duxbury Beach gets several Snowys each winter. Actually, many are caught at Logan Airport and brought to Duxbury, which is a short distance as the owl flies, but I suppose the hunting is better at the beach. It's a lot quieter!

I didn't get any good photos, I would have needed a tripod and a big lens, but you can clearly make out that it is a Snowy Owl. Along with the omnipresent gulls, there were also many ducks, including a pair of Longtails, several Common Eiders and Goldeneyes, and a loon.

Magic Jack

I've been researching the Magic Jack for a while and have a couple friends who use it and are very happy. I finally bit the bullet and got one. So far, so good. I've made a couple calls and had Queenee call me back and the calls sound perfectly clear. I'll be using it as a business number.

It's very easy to set up — not quite like the TV commercial, but close. I'm using Vista, so I had to download an update from the MJ website, but that installed perfectly. Once the software installs, you'll choose your area code, then the regional code. Area code selection is pretty extensive, regional codes less so, but adequate. No vanity numbers, unfortunately, so I got an ugly number, but it will do. For someone in an apartment or condo, this would be a decent replacement for Ma Bell, imho. The downsides are they don't recommend using the MJ for 911 emergency calls, and when you shut down your computer, your phone is gone too. I suppose you could run a very basic PC 24/7, dedicated to MJ. I'm not that attached to my phone.

I'm also using a powered USB hub, something I'd highly recommend. My computer USB ports are pretty well used up and the MJ does need some power, so a powered USB hub is the way to go. You can get them fairly inexpensively, $15-20.

I bought my MJ at the local Radio Shack. I figured that way I wouldn't have to wait to try it out. $39.99 plus tax, which comes to $19.99 for the unit and $19.99 for one year's worth of call service. You can't beat that with a stick.

Now we wait to see if the feds decide to tax the MJ service. They've been bitching about it for a while now, as have the big telecoms. We all pay tax on our phone service, but because MJ and Skype are using VoIP, they haven't been taxing the calls. The Feds want their pound of flesh, but have gotten distracted in the last few months and haven't gotten around to getting back to this issue. Frankly, I think if they already tax my internet connection, that should cover any VoIP service I choose to use.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Westminster Kennel Club show

Ths year's Westminster Kennel Club show was a bit slower than usual, but still loads of fun. There were 170 breeds and varieties at this 133rd edition of Westminster, including one new breed, the Dogue de Bordeaux.

The first four groups were decided on Monday night. A 7-year-old Scottish deerhound named Tiger Woods -- his owner is a huge golfer -- won the hound group Monday night, then a Scottish terrier took the terrier group. The standard poodle called Yes was best among the non-sporting dogs and a puli took the herding group.

I picked the deerhound, but thought the 3rd place Norwich might win the terrier group. In the non-sporting group, I was surprised that the dalmatian didn't even make the cut, he was a gorgeous dog. Still, the frenchie got 2nd and the bichon was 4th. In the herding group, I picked the Belgian Malinois and was surprised again that he didn't place at all.

I did better picking winners Tuesday night, I got the winners in all three groups. The Sporting group was first and there were many fine dogs. I liked the English setter, the pointer and the Clumber spaniel, but was thrilled to see Stump, a 10-year-old Sussex spaniel just out of retirement the week before, win. The Toy group was supposed to be a showdown between the affenpinsher and the Brussels griffon, but it was no contest, the Brussels was spot on. In the Working group I had the top two: the giant schnauzer and the boxer. And the mastiff showed very well last night. He didn't get picked, but he had a lot of personality.

For Best in Show, I was certain that the winner was going to be one of the three dogs from Tuesday night. Beautiful as the other four dogs were, they were not going to beat any one of the other three. Spirit and Lincoln were at their best, but I hoped against hope that Stump would pull it off. Stump proved impossible to resist.

Judge Sari Brewster Tietjen said she made her decision at the last minute.

"I didn’t know who he was or how old he was," Tietjen said. "He’s just everything that you’d want in the breed, and I couldn’t say no to him."

Stump won't have the same hectic schedule for the next year that last year's winner, Uno the beagle, had. Stump will go back to Texas where he lives with handler/part-owner Scott Sommer and 2001 Westminster Best in Show winner J.R., a bichon frisé. I think he'll be a popular winner anyway.

During the working group competition, the rottweiler's leash came off during the trot down and back. Unless you saw the handler keeping his hand in place, you wouldn't have noticed. That's a good dog.

My favorite Westminster Best in Show night was 2003. What I loved about that 2003 Best in Show, and what I haven't seen the last few years, is the free stack. The handlers take the dogs out and they have to assume the classic breed pose, whatever that is, without the handlers placing their legs. I remember 2003 clearly because dog after dog hit their pose. The stack varies; most breeds stack with their weight over their front legs and their hind legs stretched out behind, and their feet form a rectangle. German Shepherds stack with their hindquarters low and one leg in front of the other. Some breeds stand square. And let's face it, who can even tell where Les, the Pekingese, has his feet. But that night in 2003 the judge had all the dogs free stack, and one after the other, Jester, Miki, Josh, Dallas, Bunny, Les, Mick, every dog hit their pose perfectly and froze. I don't know why recent judges have skipped it, unless it's a time constraint, but I'd gladly delay the 11pm news to see the BiS competitors free stack.

PopPop spotted our local coyote yesterday morning. It's the first sighting this year and PopPop says he looks very fit. I don't know if he'll continue hanging around, since we are out of chickens and two cats short now.

Bob Parson's 16 Rules

I was just listening to a Bob Parson's blogcast and thought I'd share his 16 Rules. He says these rules have helped him in business and in life, so maybe they can help us, too.

1. Get and stay out of your comfort zone.
2. Never give up.
3. When you are ready to quit, you're closer than you think.
4. Accept the worst possible outcome.
5. Focus on what you want to have happen.
6. Take things a day at a time.
7. Always be moving forward.
8. Be quick to decide.
9. Measure everything of significance.
10. Anything that is not managed will deteriorate.
11. Pay attention to your competitors, but pay more attention to what you're doing.
12. Never let anybody push you around.
13. Never expect life to be fair.
14. Solve your own problems.
15. Don't take yourself too seriously.
16. There's always a reason to smile.

Charlie S was here this weekend to have a look at the furnace, which is on its last legs. He has a replacement for us and wanted to be sure it would fit — it will, which is great news for Queenee's pocketbook! Deacon will help him install it sometime in the late spring or summer, when we can afford to go a few days without heat.

Unsigned bands

Check 'em out, all unsigned:

Lunabee & Swan (love the way they've redecorated their site)

HTRK - remind a wee bit of Mazzy Star

ZaZa - giving away an EP, they are also on MySpace

Stoned at seven

Found on YouTube:

This is my 7 year old son who had an extra tooth removed last summer, 2008. I had the camera because he was so nervous before I wanted him to see before and after.

He was so out of it after, I had to carry him out of the office. The staff was laughing and I had tears it was so funny.

He is doing fine now and the teeth are great.

Best of all he is the best kid as his brother William. I couldnt have asked for two better sons!

2/3 Update: Video camera is a flip video. not bad for $150 bucks!

This kid is going to be pissed at his father. Imagine what the poor kid is enduring in school today.

Snow bird

He must be a Canadian robin to be wintering here, especially with the weather we've had. January was colder than average, I think around 29F, and we've had a fair amount of snow this winter. Boston averages 42.2 inches of snow annually and we must be above that by now. We've had two storms that dropped a good 12-15" each and two that gave us around 10". We'll get about 3" today. Of course, we saw almost 50" in January alone in 2005!

Best Super Bowl XLIII ad

Without a doubt, my favorite commercial was the Doritos Snow Globe commercial. I laughed for a good five minutes.



I've linked more of the ads from the Elbow.

The game itself was much better than I expected. I thought the Steelers would romp through and poor Arizona would be out by halftime. What a nice surprise to see a good game. Pittsburgh did win, but just. Santonio Holmes caught a six-yard touchdown pass with 35 seconds to play to give the Steelers a 27-23 victory. Less than 30 seconds wasn't enough time for the Cardinals to put together another big play, and the game ended on a fumble by Kurt Warner, who became the first quarterback to pass at least 300 yards in each of three Super Bowls. This game saw the Super Bowl's first safety since 1991, also played in Tampa, when the NY Giants beat the Buffalo Bills 20–19, the smallest margin of victory in Super Bowl history.

I'm glad the Australian Open is over. I was rooting for Serena Williams (who won) and Roger Federer (who lost), but those 3am ET matches were killing me!

Happy Groundhog Day! We here in the Northeast have another six weeks of winter to look forward to — starting tomorrow.