Jeff’s random thoughts
There’s a new show on CBS called Flashpoint. It’s about hostage negotiators and snipers.
Now… I’m into negotiation, so you’d think that I’d love this show. I mean sure, the technology is cool – I wouldn’t mind having someone assist every now and again with a voice in my ear while I’m in the middle of a negotiation… but the rest of the show just drags on.
To be honest, I was hoping for a little less talky-talky and a little more shooty-shooty.
So, tonight I was watching the 2008 Miss Universe pageant on TV (don’t ask, it was the only thing on). Apparently, tonight was near the end, so there were 8 or so women left – evening gown competition time. Miss USA tripped down the initial step and fell flat on her butt. She was poised, got back up and kept moving as if it never happened.
Tina immediately wondered aloud how long it would take for video to appear on YouTube. So I went to look. Nope… not yet.
UPDATE (7/14/08): Video is now posted:
BUT, there WERE other videos of Miss USA 2007 at the Miss Universe 2007 pageant also falling on her butt.
So, two years in a row, the Miss USA contestant falls at the Miss Universe pageant during the evening gown portion of the event. Doesn’t this qualify for some sort of curse, chant or other superstition?
About 2 years ago, I wrote a story about getting my PowerBook G4 fixed as a result of a hinge problem. At the time, I was indignant that Apple had a known defect in their product and wouldn’t repair it for me. I spent some time in the AppleStore in Durham, NC (this was before the one in Raleigh opened) trying to see if they would assist under warranty… and they didn’t. So my post was a result of my frustration at trying to get help for something I thought Apple should’ve taken care of, yet didn’t.
However, I didn’t lose my cool at the AppleStore, on the phone with Apple or anywhere else. If anything, I was mostly upset with myself and sad that I was going to have to pay a few hundred dollars for something I knew I was going to replace relatively soon.
Today I saw a post on Gizmodo about another guy who “Lost his S#?!” at the AppleStore in DC. It linked to a comic he wrote about the experience. (The comic is safe, but the comments afterwards are a little NSFW, so view this at home and away from young eyes).
Essentially, the guy had a very similar machine that I used to have… and he wanted to install a wireless card in it after purchase. He was upset that the screws on the machine weren’t “standard” (they’re TORX, which are, as you’ll see from reading the comments, standard) and that he says he had trouble finding them at various stores (which people in the comments refute). He was upset that Apple wouldn’t give him a screwdriver in the AppleStore to fix his own machine (for the same reasons that your auto mechanic won’t let you use their tools to fix your car).
He ultimately lost his cool at the AppleStore and wrote the comic as a way to vent.
Now, per my other missives above, I do understand venting. I also understand being frustrated by a situation that I believe is somehow unfair.
But I do NOT take it out on others (Tina may disagree, since she hears me at home). So let me clarify… I don’t take it out on the customer service person who really doesn’t have much control over the situation.
[Update – about 3 seconds after hitting Publish]: OK… so I realize that by posting this little story, I’m probably perpetuating something that should just die. And, as Tina reminds me (man, I really love this girl) arguing with everyone I ever disagreed with isn’t productive. Which, in turn, reminded me of one of my favorite comic artists of all time. So I’m converting this post from a semi-rant to a positive suggestion for you all to read XKCD.com on a regular basis. Here’s one of Randall’s drawings, completely on point.
If you were born in the 70s, grew up in the 80s and were male… you LOVED Knight Rider. The Hoff wasn’t a dweeb yet (we had no idea he wanted to sing). KITT (the car) was awesome – and so was Bonnie. But I digress.
Mio just released their Knight Rider GPS – which comes STANDARD with William Daniels as the voice of this turn-by-turn speaking device.
Sweet! Hey Tina!!! I want one. My birthday is coming in a few months! 🙂
I waited a few months before writing this… mostly because I was busy, but partially because I wanted to see how it all played out.
The long-story-short version of the stolen credit card saga is that one of the drivers of the limo service we used in Orlando was the culprit. They used the card to charge their household bills on (not very bright)… and they confessed once cornered.
I still need to followup with the DA on the case, as I asked to press charges. So we’ll see what happens. So far, no restitution or anything like that.
The new video for Again and Again by The Bird and The Bee
It’s 2:31 AM. The Democratic Party is sleeping peacefully when it hears its phone buzz on the night stand. It rolls over and sees “Hillary” on the caller ID. It pauses briefly, considering pushing “END” and not dealing with this shit tonight. The thought is appealing but the Democratic Party knows that if it doesn’t take this call, another one is only minutes away.
DEMS: …Hello?
Hillary: Hey baby.
DEMS: C’mon Hillary. Enough with this.
Hillary: Don’t you get it? You NEED me.
DEMS: No, I don’t. It was fun while it lasted but I’m with Barack now. I made my choice, it’s done.
Hillary: You can’t really mean that. How can you say that after all the good times we had?
… continued at: http://madatoms.com/2008/05/edit-hillary-clinton-psycho-ex.html
Back in 2001, ABC television launched a new reality gameshow called “The Mole.”
The concept was simple… play a game to win money, but try to figure out who is trying to sabotage the game (thus reducing the amount of money available to win). Each week, players would attempt to identify the Mole – and eliminate those that they thought WERE the Mole.
There were two sequels, Mole 2 and Celebrity Mole (if I remember correctly, Stephen Baldwin was the best Mole ever). In any event, I’d pretty much forgotten about the show until a few weeks ago.
It’s no secret that I have Tivo and love skipping commercials. But even with a great trigger finger, I still usually have to pop back with just a few seconds left before the end of the commercial break. And a few weeks ago, I caught sight of a single dark frame with “the mole was here” written on it during Lost. I didn’t think much of it… thinking that maybe someone was just playing around and messed something up.
But I’m watching Brothers and Sisters right now… and here it is again at the 21 minute mark.
A quick jump to IMDB says that it looks like they’re doing a new “season” in 2008. And Wikipedia confirms what I’m seeing, too, as an advertisement for the Mole.
But how is this not subliminal advertising? I think the argument is that it’s actually consciously visible (ie: you actually KNOW that you’re seeing the logo and words) and thus it’s not actually subliminal.
I don’t know that I buy that, though. Any experts in advertising law out there?