Did I mention that I love the Summer Olympics?



Germany's Stephanie Pohl (R) jumps for the ball aginst China's Lu Wang during the preliminary rounds of the women's beach volleyball at Athens 2004 Olympic Games, August 14, 2004.

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Germany's Okka Rau, right, hides her hands behind her back as she sends a signal to her partner Stephanie Pohl, left, during their match at the Olympic Beach Volleyball Centre in Athens, Greece on Saturday, Aug. 14, 2004. The German team beat China's Lu Wang and Wenhui You in two sets, 21-17 and 21-18.

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Australia's Summer Lochowicz, left, hugs teammate Kerri Pottharst as China's Wang Fei watches following their beach volleyball match in the 2004 Athens Olympics in Athens, Greece on Saturday, Aug. 14, 2004. Austrailia won 21-18 and 21-18.

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Dick and Linda are OK per this e-mail:

In spite of what you saw on TV or read in the paper, it was all very anticlimactic here in ######. We had two brief, but heavy, showers before I went to bed at 10:00. The worst of the hurricane was supposed to hit our area between midnight and 8:00 AM. I woke up at 12:00, 2:00. and 4:30. Each time I went to the front door and looked out. The driveway was wet but it wasn't raining. The air was calm.

This morning, there are no branches down nor any sign that there had been a major storm. I haven't turned on the TV but I think it must have veered out to sea before it reached northeast Florida. I guess that makes it a non-event.

People are out on the golf course playing although it appears to be 'cart-path-only'.

Olympic flame?

How many people do you know with a red 747 Swingline stapler? I want to be one of them.

I love the Olympics!

Russian water polo player Maria Yaina prepares for team training at the Athens Olympic Aquatic centre on August 13, 2004. The water polo competition starts on August 15.

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Brazil's swimmer Mariana Brochado stands near the pool before a training session in the Olympic Aquatic Centre in Athens, August 12, 2004. The swimming competition at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games starts on August 14.

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Logan Tom, outside hitter for the U.S. Women's Olympic Volleyball Team, is one of six women featured in the September issue of FHM magazine as part of the magazine's salute to some of Team USA's standout female athletes.

I want a Big-Bang carbide cannon from The Conestoga Company, Inc.



They are very loud, but there is no fire or gunpowder required. You light it with water!

This is the second $4 hanging geranium that we transplanted into one of our pots on the patio. They have both really filled out big in just a few weeks. Surprising.

This is right under our family room window. A hosta on the right; I think another goat's beard in the middle (but I think I am wrong) and I am not sure what the plant on the right is.

This is on the west side of the back yard. There are two peony plants in the center that you can't really see. Right now they are just sticks. The one on the left right above the stone head just sprouted some leaves this weekend. That's a big hosta in the front, and I don't know what the rest of the plants are.

The other $4 hanging pot on the back fence. I am really surprised (and happy!) at how well they are doing and the amount of flowers they keep producing.

These are three heirloom tomato plants we planted. It was very late in the season to plant them, but Franks had them on sale for something stupid like 50¢, so if we don't get any fruit, no big deal. There is a bell pepper plant behind them that you can't see in this picture that the rabbits have taken a likeing to. It still has leaves and the start of some buds, but I don't know for how long.

Another shot along the back of the yard. That is a type of grass above and to the left of that stone head. A hosta is in the center of the frame. I forget wat the other plants are. There is another grass half out of frame on the left.

This is the bed along the back of the yard again. The exposed phone line is just out of frame to the left. The large plant just above and to the left of the stone head is called a goat's beard. It is one of Mom and Dad's favorites. The plant closest to the top of the frame was transplanted from our front yard. We were going to through it out, but Mom lobbied to save it. I'm glad she did; it looks good there.

Another $4 hanging basket. This is one of the two that is on the back fence. I forget if it is the one on the east side or the west side.

This is from our patio looking directly behind our house (looking south).

This is along the back of the yard facing east. At the top left of the picture is where I dug up the telephone line! They still have not been out to re-bury it yet.

This was one of the $4 hanging baskets. I don't think it was growing past the bottom of the pot when we got it.

I wanted to post some pictures I took tonight after work of the plants and landscaping that Mom and Dad helped us with about a month ago. These geraniums were in a discounted hanging basket for $4! We just transplanted them into our patio pot.

The extremists on both sides, Republicans and Democrats, are very frustrating to me. The political environment has gotten so polarized that the issues are not important anymore. It is entirely their side against my side. There is no more political discourse.

The conservatives entirely underestimate how much society has helped get them where they are. They think everything they have in their lives is 100% a result of their hard work. As a result they are usually against anything that doesn’t directly benefit them. They miss the intangibles in life. Having one less uneducated person in the world means there will be one more person to make a contribution to society, the economy, etc.

People on the far left seem to think the government has unlimited riches that are secretly stashed away and that there should be less income and wealth disparity. There needs to be incentive for risk takers and the people that go above and beyond, other wise our society will be stuck in mediocrity.

When I first became politically-aware, which was right around my last year in college, I was a proud Republican. I voted a straight Republican ticket. Looking back over the last 15 years however, the Republican Party has totally changed. The Democrat party now seems to be more similar to the 1989 Republican Party.

The Republicans now stand for big government rather than smaller government. The economy was the Republicans main focus back then. Now it seems to be short-term benefits to taxpayers at the long-term expense of the country's infrastructure and human capital.

The Republicans will say they are protecting the Constitution, and in the same breath announce an initiative that is blatantly unconstitutional. Then a year or two later, when the Supreme Court rules that said initiative is unconstitutional, scream that the country is being ruined by the courts. Flag burning is the best example of this. I despise flag burners. I love my country. But a law making flag burning illegal is so obviously unconstitutional I am always surprised when a senator tries again to get this ball rolling. If you think about it, if this law did pass, all of the bumpkins that wear black t-shirts with images of the American flag waving above their favorite Nascar driver would be violating the law.

I think the country is in big trouble if we don't get back to a more moderate political climate.

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." -- Aristotle

He's brilliant I tell ya.

U.S. President George W. Bush holds an ear of raw sweet corn that he ate on a visit to the Bettendorf farmers' market during a campaign stop in Iowa, August 4, 2004. Bush is on a three-day campaign swing through middle America in the hotly contested states of Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio and Michigan.

WASHINGTON -- John McCain is attacking as "dishonest and dishonorable" a new ad questioning John Kerry's heroism in Vietnam, but the White House is declining to condemn the ad.

The commercial, which is scheduled to be aired in several cities, features Vietnam veterans accusing the Democratic nominee of lying about his war record and betraying his comrades by opposing the conflict.

McCain said something similar was "pulled" on him when he ran against President George W. Bush in the 2000 primaries.

The Arizona GOP senator is a friend of Kerry's and also a decorated war hero.

"I deplore this kind of politics," McCain said. "I think the ad is dishonest and dishonorable. As it is, none of these individuals served on the boat (Kerry) commanded. Many of his crew have testified to his courage under fire. I think John Kerry served honorably in Vietnam. I think George Bush served honorably in the Texas Air National Guard during the Vietnam War."

Asked about the ad as the president flew to Ohio, Press Secretary Scott McClellan said Bush has never questioned Kerry's military service.

But McClellan did not denounce the specific ad.

He did note it is being aired by an ostensibly independent group and Kerry should join in calling for all such ads to be pulled.

Bush has been the object of lots of ads by what McClellen called "shadowy" groups.

Much of the information that led authorities to raise the terror alert at several large financial institutions in the NY and D.C. areas was 3 or 4 years old... NYT Tuesday Page One Splash To Claim: Intelligence and law enforcement officials 'had not yet found concrete evidence that a terror plot or preparatory surveillance operations were still under way'...
[source: Drudge Report]

Ohio State is ranked #9 in the preseason poll.

Their rank at the end of last season was #4.

Hey Sheri

(Sung to the tune of "Hey Julie" by Fountains of Wayne)

Working all day for a mean little man
With a clip-on tie and a rub-on tan
He's got me running 'round the office like a dog around a track
But when I get home,
You're always there to rub my back

Hey Sheri,
Look what they're doing to me
Trying to trip me up
Trying to wear me down
Sheri, I swear, it's so hard to bear it
And I'd never make it through without you around

Hours on the phone making pointless calls
I got a desk full of papers that means nothing at all
Sometimes I catch myself staring into space
Counting down the hours 'til I get to see your face

Hey Sheri,
Look what they're doing to me
Trying to trip me up
Trying to wear me down
Sheri, I swear, it's so hard to bear it
And I'd never make it through with out you around
No, I'd never make it through with out you around

How did it come to be
That you and I must be
Far away from each other every day?
Why must I spend my time
Filling up my mind
With facts and figures that never add up anyway?
They never add up anyway

Working all day for a mean little guy
With a bad toupee and a spou-stained tie
He's got me running 'round the office
Like a gerbil on a wheel
He can tell me what to do
But he can't tell me what to feel

Hey Sheri,
Look what they're doing to me
Trying to trip me up
Trying to wear me down
Sheri, I swear, it's so hard to bear it
And I'd never make it through with out you around
No, I'd never make it through without you around
No, I'd never make it through with out you around

For the first time in history, U.S. annual incomes fall for second time in two years. Thanks George W.

No retreat, baby, no surrender!

I cracked up when I saw this. My friend Tom E. has sheep. He used to have a beard like that, and I think he wears a hat like that on occasion.

This is how to spot the REALLY REALLY rich guys.

I applied the second bag of lawn fertilizer of the season about two weeks ago, and then we had two or three days of heavy rain soon after that. The grass is now a deep rich green. I love seeing that immediate transformation.

Our lawn got neglected the last two years because too much other s--t was going on. It is coming back amazingly well now.

I still need to get out in the newly dug flower beds with some herbicide for existing individual weeds that have come up through the mulch, and apply Preen to keep new weeds from popping up. I think today will be a perfect day for that.

I also bought some Miracle-Gro tomato fertilizer that needs to be applied now.

Walking around downtown yesterday we saw the new 300C parked in the street. I We changed course just to go look at it. It is very "muscley" and aggressive looking; especially the nose. The narrow side-windows also make it look very serious. However, when it comes down to it I guess I am not a "car guy". I don't feel the need to pay a whole bunch of money just to look good driving down the street. I can appreciate good styling and the underlying mechanical engineering, but not enough to compel me to buy one of them. I am much more compelled to buy on internal attributes like mileage, safety, internal dimensions, etc.

al Qaeda promises 'columns of car bombs' in Italy and Australia!

They finally opened up the Bobak's near us. Bobak's is a Polish deli, butchers, grocery store, and restaurant. They make and smoke all of their own sausages. Delicious.

So, we wanted to go out for dinner, and I was starving. We checked their website to see if it was open yet, and it said it was. We called just to confirm. Their restaurant is buffet style. Great for me, but a waste for Sheri. You can get food from the buffet for take-out by the ounce, so we asked if Sheri could just pay by weight rather than paying for the entire buffet. They said no problem. It worked out perfect. She had half of a breaded pork chop, a tablespoon of mashed potatoes and gravy, a tablespoon of corn, half of a potato pancake, a slice of polish cheese, and a slice of pineapple. She only ate about half of it. We will defiantly do that again.

Afterwards we strolled through the grocery store just to check things out. We got some of their Chicago-style hot dogs, homemade sauerkraut from a big serve-yourself barrel, a mango for $0.33, a couple of vine ripened tomatoes, and some half-baked rolls for the hotdogs. (I will finish baking them in the toaster oven when I am ready to use them. Mmmmm)

Just like the Bobak's in Burr Ridge, there were a bunch of really hot Polish babes walking around the grocery store.

We came home and made a couple of nice cups of coffee in the Senseo to cap off our meal. Also mmmmmmm.

We are going to wrap things up and get to bed so we are ready to walk dogs tomorrow morning.

With all of the hub-bub about West Nile virus, I am considering purchasing a Mosquito Magnet Defender. Home Depot is selling them for $300, and they cover ½ an acre. The next model up is $500 and covers a full acre. Consumer reports says it is the most effective and convenient mosquito trap.

Virus writer purports to show bin Laden's death

Antivirus company Sophos warned Friday of a scheme that invokes Osama bin Laden to convince people to open a file containing a Trojan horse called Hackarmy.

The message, which has been posted on several Internet newsgroups, claims to contain pictures taken by CNN journalists of bin Laden committing suicide. But once the supposed picture file is opened, it installs a Trojan horse [virus] that effectively recruits the infected machine into the author's army of "zombie" PCs--already-infected machines that can be controlled surreptitiously from afar. The zombified computers can then be used to distribute spam or launch denial-of-service attacks...[more]

[Reader's Digest version: DON'T CLICK ON ANYTHING THAT SAYS IT IS A VIDEO OF OSAMA BIN LADEN COMMITTING SUICIDE!]

Natasha, a 5-year-old black macaque walks at the Safari Park near Tel Aviv Tuesday July 20, 2004. The young monkey began recently walking exclusively on her hind legs after a stomach ailment nearly killed her, zookeepers said.
(AP Photo/Eli Dasa)

Moron

A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.
-- William Shedd

The heat index in Chicago for Tuesday and Wednesday is forcast to be 99°!

We think we are going to buy Doom 3 when it is released on August 3.

I was up and at 'em at 8 am this morning because I was so excited to have another cup of Senseo coffee!

I found this site last night that is dedicated to reviewing anything related to pod coffee makers.

We bought a Senseo coffee maker today. I already LOVE it. It makes what is called "crema" style coffee because it has a light layer of creamy foam on top. It is the kind of coffee they served everywhere when I was in Switzerland. It is halfway between regular drip coffee and espresso, and is brewed under pressure. Because it is brewed quickly, it has much less acid than drip coffee. This coffee maker has been sold in Europe for something like five to ten years. 5,000,000 units have been sold. Europeans drink much smaller cups of coffee than Americans do. As a result of its European roots it is designed to only brew 4 ounces at a time. This was a big selling point for me. If I make a pot of coffee, I will drink the whole thing even if don't really want it. Getting four ounces of perfectly brewed coffee-house coffee will be just enough to get enjoyment without over-doing it. The preparation and cleanup is also super easy because it uses pre-measured pods. They cost about 25¢ each. Much cheaper than Starbucks.

Saturday Afternoon

I am sitting in Panera using their free wireless internet while Sheri does some shopping at Kohl's, Payless Shoes, Marshall's, etc. We split a turkey and cheese panini sandwich.
 
Before coming here we walked the dogs; stopped at CompUSA so I could exchange my defective USB flash drive that I posted about earlier; and then stopped at home so I could shower.
 
I want to go to Menard's to buy some more mulch, but my back is still hurting from Mom and Dad's visit.

Dad, keep an eye out for something from me in the mail. You won't believe your eyes.
Posted by Hello

Yep, I think I like "Hello". Free. No strings. Easy. Download your copy and add me as a friend and we can share pictures back and forth. (or just forth if you don't have a digital camera.)
Posted by Hello

This is just another test picture. The first one looked like it posted OK.
Posted by Hello

I am trying out some new software to host pictures in my blog for free, so I just needed a couple of test pictures. This is a dog picture that Sheri took last week but did not post. I think he looks a lot like Goliath. Our vet always said Goliath was a beagle mix. I think the mix was beagle/lab mix
Posted by Hello

Martha Stewart was sentenced to five months in prison, plus five months of home detention and a $30,000 fine for lying to federal authorities investigating her sale of stock in a friend's company.

Important!

There have been some Windows security patches posted by Microsoft over the last few weeks. Click here and then click on the "Scan for updates" button. It will check your computer to see which patches you need installed on your computer. It should be pretty self explanatory. Just make sure that you have all of the items under "Critical Updates" checked and then click install. Depending on when the last time your system was updated you might have to do it a couple of times because some of the patches must be installed by themselves and then you have to reboot.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Sheri had a scare for about 30 minutes tonight; she lost her wedding ring. It turned up in my sock drawer. It slipped off while she was putting away laundry because her fingers have gotten too skinny. We need to take it in to the jewelers to have it resized.

I just got done cutting the grass and watering the flower beds. Everything still looks good. We still need to take some final pictures and post them to the web.



I ordered a few things from Amazon last night. The practical thing is a 256 megabyte flash drive for my keychain. It is basically a 256 Mg hard drive that fits on my keychain. That is as much storage space as 176 floppy disks!

The other items are things I am starting to collect casually:

WARNING: LOTS of bad language, but VERY funny.

Here are a couple of video clips of Shawn that Lisa asked me to post to make it easier for everyone to view. They are from a wedding they went to this weekend. It is cute that he dances exactly like Tim.

Clip 1

Clip 2

I was up most of the night with a severe stomach ache. No matter which way I turned I couldn’t get comfortable. I spent most of the night downstairs on the couch watching CNN. I was exhausted when it was time to walk the dogs so I stayed at home.

My stomach got better, but then I got a headache. Before we went out I took an Excedrin and we stopped at 7-Eleven for a Diet Coke. That fixed me up.

We went to the Toyota dealership so I could sit in a Corolla. I have been driving 30 miles to work each day (60 miles round trip). I am interested in a position in Algonquin which would be about 50 miles (100 miles round trip). It would be mostly expressway; I-355 north to I-90 West. With that kind of driving fuel efficiency becomes much more important.

The Corolla gets 41 mpg, (our Lumina gets 27 mpg) but I was concerned about the size of the car. They didn’t have a model in the air conditioned show room, so I had to have a salesman walk me to a model in the lot. I didn’t want to drive, just sit in it. With him standing three feet from me it was difficult to get a true feel for the car, plus it was baking hot, so I didn’t want to take too long, but it felt pretty good. He said I might be more comfortable in the larger Camry, so I sat in one that was in the showroom. I don’t think I noticed much difference, but again I felt like I couldn’t take my time because he was standing there three feet from me.

We then stopped at Cost Plus World Market outlet store; didn’t find anything. Then went to CompUSA to get a Memorex USB keyboard ($10 after mail-in rebate!) to use with the tablet PC I have been bringing home from work. Then went to Target to see if they had any Simpson’s figures. They didn’t, but we got toilet paper and a box of cereal. When I went to pay my credit card was missing. I paid with cash and then we went back to CompUSA. The cashier forgot to give it back to me.

On the way home we remembered that the area’s first Lowe’s hardware store had opened up this week, so we stopped in there just to check it out. I bought a $7 50-foot garden hose for the front of the house.

I looked at their selection of appliances. Huge! We need a dishwasher, and I would like a new GAS range. We currently have an electric range, but there is a gas connection behind the stove. They will install any dishwasher for $110. Not too bad. We will probably be doing that soon.

We are watching Paycheck now while I type this on the tablet PC using my new USB keyboard, and I am watering the front lawn with the new hose.

Mom and Dad came to Chicago Sunday morning and stayed until Wednesday morning. They came with 17 plants and their work clothes. We spent every day landscaping our yard. It looks amazing! Here are the first batch of pictures. Some before; some during; some after. I will post the rest in the next day or two.

I am achy all over; back, legs, etc. We had a fun time too.

I want to try this bathroom. It reminds me of a recurring dream I have.

Cool!

Can you name the truck with four-wheel drive,
smells like a steak, and seats thirty-five?
Canyonero! Canyonero!

Well, it goes real slow with the hammer down.
It's the country-fried truck endorsed by a clown.
Canyonero! Canyonero!

Twelve yards long, two lanes wide,
sixty-five tons of American pride!
Canyonero! Canyonero!

Top of the line in utility sports,
unexplained fires are a matter for the courts!
Canyonero! Canyonero!

She blinds everybody with her super high-beams.
She's a squirrel-squashin', deer-smackin' drivin' machine.
Whoa, Canyonero! Whoa!

I want the new Honda scooter called the Ruckus just for messing around. Doesn't it look fun? The MSRP is $1,900.