Liloia.com

Friday5-March 29th

1. If you could eat dinner with and "get to know" one famous person (living or dead), who would you choose?

The Lindbergh Baby. I would be all like, "Hey, where did you go man?"

2. Has the death of a famous person ever had an effect on you? Who was it and how did you feel?

Not one. Well, except maybe DeForest Kelley - because it meant there would be no more Bones in the Star Trek movies. "Dammit Jim, I'm a doctor, not a eustachian tube!"

3. If you could BE a famous person for 24 hours, who would you choose?

OJ Simpson and I would take my lying ass to a police station and confess.

4. Do people ever tell you that you look like someone famous? Who?

Nope. I just look like me.

5. Have you ever met anyone famous?

Neil Gaiman once, he was quite suave. He said I had cool hair.

Mormon Name

What's your Mormon name?

Rum & Monkey

I'm Tabrina Alocia.

Easter Fun

In the spirit of Easter...

Iceberg, dead ahead

I'm tired of hearing about crap like this. Is this not the year 2002? Can we not figure out how to triumph over the whims of nature and make enough lettuce for everyone's Buffalo Chicken Salad? Isn't that an inanlienable American right?

[Insert whine about current dearth of flying cars here.]

Gone for Good

Let's all try, just for today, to eliminate the word 'good' from our vocabulary.

It's such a non-word, like 'nice', and there is almost always a more descriptive and creative alternative.

~Good luck~

Daypop

This is probably one of the coolest sites I have found in a while. It's not anything flashy or fancy, but it is neat. Daypop is a current events/weblog/news search engine. So basically they are the Google of weblogs and news. They have a very similar look and their functionality is similar as well.

They offer the code for you to be able to add their search toolbar to your website. I am interested in doing that but I am not really sure where I would put it and how useful it might be, so in the meantime I will pop it here.

Loggerheads and Blobs

So there's this unidentified black blob that recently appeared off the Florida coast...

...and Floridian Loggerhead turtles are suddenly turning up with a mysterious paralysis.

But in spite of this, CNN declares, "Florida tops annual list of clean, safe beaches".

I'm not sure I believe them.

Bunny Fun

A few months ago, I posted a link to a Flash presentation called "Poke the Bunny". While being pretty fun, this one totally buries that one. Shake the Bunny

Let the Bunny grab your mouse pointer and then toss him around the screen. It is pretty creative and I was surprised as to how fast the images move. This was passed on to me from Adam. Cool Stuff.

Update - I had originally linked Adam's name to his website. It seems however that his school has figured out that he graduated and taken his site down. Oh well

The Omega Code

I'm a cryptography junkie and a sucker for any movie with the word 'code' in the title. Which is the sole reason I added the Omega Code to my Netflix rental queue. I remember glossing over the online plot description and customer reviews, seeing only the words, "apocalyptic", "technology", and "break the code". Like a moth being pulled to the beaconing, blue glow of the Zap-O-Matic, I was sucked in—only to be fried like a KFC Crispy Strip.

I should have sensed trouble when an ad for the Crossroads Fellowship ("The heart of Crossroads Fellowship is people helping people connect authentically to God, connect vitally to one another and connect effectively with our world.") preceeded the feature. The last thing I want from a film is "help connecting effectively with my world". I'd like a two-hour fantasy-fest with a side order of disconnect from reality, please.

Make no mistake, Omega Code has all of the elements that indicate great movie potential : pending apocalypse, a code that needs cracking, and one man that can save the world. But it lacks any smarts and the plot holes are larger than those created by our friends at the Big Dig. Here is the script, edited for your sanity.

Casper Van Dien's performance is a lesson in bad timing and clueless line delivery. I didn't sense that he cared at all about his wife and daughter or even the death of his mother which was supposedly the catalyst for his crisis of faith. And if I don't believe our hero is having a crisis of faith, then the overhyped moment when he regains his faith in a flash of light is going to mean absoultely nothing to me.

Years pass in odd intervals, noted only by clumsy titles, with no corresponding change in the characters or their clothing. A printer spews decrypted prophecies that read like Burma Shave ditties. And two prophets that rise from the dead are distractingly reminiscent of Randolph and Mortimer Duke from the movie Trading Places.

One family-friendly site lauds the film for promoting the importance of marriage because an older, happily-married couple counsels Van Dien to "make it work" with his wife. It would be an admirable value to promote if Van Dien's wife didn't randomly appear and disappear with all the importance and regularity of a Domino's delivery person for the rest of the film.

My main gripe is that if you're going to propagandize, at least do it well. (Scientologists, take note.) I was insulted by the ending in which Van Dien cries out for God's help and instantly neutralizes the threat to humanity. If life really were that simplistic, good things wouldn't happen to bad people.

If you're looking for a really good, looming-apocalypse movie, try Dogma. If you're in the mood for one that's not as good, try The Seventh Sign. But if you've accidentally slept through church and need a hefty dose of angry-God fundamentalism, you can satisfy your RDA with The Omega Code.

Potty Training #2

A few weeks ago, I mentioned how Trevor was having a difficult time potty training. He didn't seem interested at all to go to the bathroom and didn't seem to care whether or not he wet his pants.

That is all changed. Now he goes to the bathroom about 90% of the time and has few if any accidents. I attribute almost all of it to Tara. She has developed for Trevor an excellent system of incentives and encouragement that has won him over and gotten him interested in learning to use the potty. (I realize how lame this may sound but this is the nature of my life right now. When I don't have a kid that is potty training, maybe I won't be so interested in this.) Thanks Ta.

Friday Five

1. What is your favorite time of year? Spring. The late part of Spring just before it turns to summer. The weather is

warm and everything is growing, but it isn't really hot yet.

2. What is it about your favorite season that, well, makes it your favorite season? The trees, flowers and other

plants all waking up from their Winter slumber. I think it is pretty amazing.

3. What is your least favorite time of year? Why? If I had to pick one it would be the Winter. I love snow and any kind of bad weather, but I don't like when it is really cold out. Being cold stinks.

4. Do you do anything to celebrate or recognize the changing of seasons? No, not really.

5. What's your favorite thing to do outside? I like to grill every chance I get as soon as the weather is warm enough. Generally we start gilling sometime in mid-February and finish for the year mid-December. We grill just about anything, including pie. Mmmm, pie.

Earthstink

We come home last night after a pretty annoying week, (Tara was sick, and I had a few Dr.'s appointments along with being swamped at work) to finally open our email after a few days of skipping it. Included in the ever increasing amount of spam that we get (spam filter? I don't think so) to find a message from Earthlink thanking us for ordering DSL service.

What?

Now mind you, we would love to order DSL but after the fiasco that we went through last summer with Earthlink and it's tech support we have decided to hold off and wait for a killer deal. On top of that Earthlink would be the last place we would order it from. I am thinking that we were slammed somehow, the way the phone companies used to get people to switch their long distance provider without them knowing it. So I decide to call them to resolve the matter, on a Saturday morning. Now I am doomed to be on hold for the rest of time. So far it has been a half an hour and we have The Gillet's arriving from NJ sometime around 2-3 PM. I hope I am off the phone by then!

As it turns out, it only took me an hour to get some help. Go figure.

Thai

Last night we found a new place to grab some grub. It is the Thai Thani.

Who would have thought that there would be a thai place in our sleepy little town? It turned out to be pretty good. Tara ordered the tofu pad thai, and I got the chicken pad thai. Trevor munched on some of each of ours and suprisingly asked for more bean sprouts. I think we may have found a new place to add to our take-out rotation.

Have your beer and drink it too.

The April issue of Maxim Magazine features the editorial pick for City of the Year. If you happen to have an issue lying around, pick it up and take a look at the winner. It's Miami, right? No? Mine says Boston. Someone else's copy says Detroit. So which is it?

It depends on where you live.

You see, Maxim was faced with such an exhausting challenge when selecting the City of the Year, that it stopped short of the actual goal of choosing one city. They chose 13 instead. And depending on your geographic location in the US, you have received an issue proclaiming the city nearest you as the winner.

Is personalized editorial conent a logical extension of personalized ad content? Or are we just being tricked into buying Maxim?

Maxim's Editor-In-Chief claims the feature was an April Fool's joke, but I would bet that bottom-line considerations came first. What Bostonite wouldn't want to buy a magazine that proclaims Beantown tops?

Instead of alienating readers in losing cities, Maxim tried to please everyone by stringing along each city with false flattery while plying the other 12 with the same candy-coated words and empty promises. And since Maxim is geared toward "the proudly underevolved male", are we really that surprised?

Smelling like a rose

Once and for all it has been proven, we have found out what the oh so wonderful "Liloia" smell is and it is not the smell of rotting garbage. Apparently, International Flavors and Fragrances has bottled the very essence of "Liloia" and it has been described by an inside chemist as "a flowery, spacey, metal-like fragrance...the fragrance Liloia smells nice."

Hah! Vindicated once and for all!

Home Alone

It turns out that my sore throat from the past 4 days is a strep infecton. In the exact words of the doctor as she peered into my throat, "Oh my god, there's all kinds of crap in there!" Nice bedside manner, eh? Must also remember in the future not to bring Trevor to my doctor's appointments. The medical personnel were far too busy flirting with him to pay any attention to me. The lab technician actually played a game with him called, "Let's Gag Mommy" while she took my throat culture. She was thrilled when he giggled after I gagged. Gee, I'm so glad to be the entertainment for Trevor and his bevy of beauties.

So I'm home sick again, but today promises to be a little more restful than yesterday since I don't have to go to the doctor and Dave (the saintly guy that he is) took Trevor to school. Back to the couch for me.

Metro

Every day I am approached by employees of Metro Media who are trying to get me to take a free copy of their daily newspaper. for a few weeks I resisted, not being a big fan of newspapers. One day, I forgot my book to read on the train, so I figured to take them up on their offer. It turns out that it is not a bad little paper and I read it once or twice a week.

Some mornings I grab the paper and don't get a chance to read it. I bring it to work and leave the paper on my desk with the intent that if I hit a slow spot, I may flip through it. This never happens. They offer an downloadable version of the daily paper from their site each day, but it it around 4 MEGS!!! Who wants to download a file that big just to read some fluff stories about George W?

Trevor Potter

Recently Trevor popped the lenses out of his sunglasses while playing and we happened upon an interesting discovery. Trevor looks a little like Harry Potter. For the last few days he has been wearing his cape and glasses, waving a stick around like a wand and pretending to be the young sorcerer himself.

Here are some pictures

Boston Common

Today we finally got our act together and spent the day in Boston. We first scoped out the Boston Common and played in the playground. After that we walked through the public gardens, Beacon Hill, Faneuil Hall and then swung by Copley Plaza before heading home. All in all it was a great day. We found out that with my commuter rail monthly pass we can all get in and around Boston on Sundays for free. I think that this may very well become a weekly tradition.

And I am the evil one?

Remember this face when you cast your ballot. Heh.

Weird Person #4

Suitcase man.

Each morning as I enter the train there is an old man sitting by himself in one of the four person seats. No one ever sits with him, and for good reason. He always takes up the entire area with a large suitcase that he has with him. The suitcase seems to be about 40 years old and filled to the brim. I don't know what is in there, but he holds it very close to him. I have seen him pull old newspapers and hankerchiefs from there but no other hint at what is inside.

He also wears a suit that is about as old as the suitcase. It is a beige tweed suit, same one every day. It is falling apart and seems like if he leans in any one direction, it will crumble. He wears an old blue dress shirt that almost looks ironed, and tattered at the same time. He hacks, and coughs and his skin has a papery look to it, as if large peices are flaking away.

I think he is homeless, but what puzzles me is why is he taking the train into Boston every day? Is he a homeless guy from Providence that panhandles on a corner near the financial disctrict? I just wish that I could find out what the deal was with him. Maybe one day I will follow him and see where he goes...

Friday Five

I keep hearing about this Friday Five thang that webloggers do. Some dude posts questions on Friday and participating webloggers post the answers on their site. Interesting concept - needs some work. (ie. the questions should be mailed to participants on Friday mornings...)

So I'll join in, but with a big heaving sigh of resignation (Dave, you can stop pestering me about this now) and secure in the knowledge that I'm never going to actually post my answer on a Friday. So there.

1. What's your favorite animal? Gnats. They're small enough that you can carry a bunch around in your pockets and no one's the wiser. And you can smack them around when you're angry and no one rats you out to the animal welfare people. When you're kicking your dog on the street people get all like, "Hey! Don't kick that adorable, innocent dog!" But when you smack around your pet gnats they're all like, "Man, way to go - you killed like 8 of them!". And they don't leave poop in your shoes.

2. What pets have you had in your lifetime? I once had a dog that dragged me across an open field for no apparent reason. And people wonder why I don't like dogs.

3. Is there any specific pet that you've wanted but never had? A llama. I had one all picked out but Michael Jackson stole it from me at the last minute.

4. Are you allergic to any animals? Humans.

5. Do you have any 'pet' pet peeves (your pets or others')? I don't think humans evolved for millions of years and survived the rigors of natural selection so that we could prove our superior intelligence by picking up dog feces with plastic shopping bags over our hands.

The Devil Made me do it

The Mayor of Inglis, Fl has officially banned Satan from the town limits. The proclamation is not a reference to a single event, Risher explained, but an overall sense of concern. She speaks of drunken drivers, fathers who molest their daughters and people who steal from their neighbors.

Town Clerk Sally McCranie, who signed the proclamation, offered another observation: Kids in town, she said, have taken to dressing in all black and painting their faces white, a style known as Goth.

Well according to this post, I am no longer allowed in Inglis, Fl. Heh, try and stop me

Fear Factor

One of the best shows out there right now is Fear Factor. I know it is culturally deficient and totally cringe television, but I love it. The stunts are great and the interaction with Joe Rogan (the host) are hysterical.

Better than all of that was this weeks episode. It was a Celebrity Fear Factor and Kevin Richardson of the Backstreet Boys was a contestant. Anytime they cover a Backstreet Boy in snakes, worms and cockroaches, is a good day for me.

Dinner Comedy

Last night, we were all sitting at the dinner table eating some cheese tortellini, and as per usual Trevor pushed his full plate away and said that he was done eating.

Let the negotiations begin.

Tara turns to me and thinking she is keeping him out of the loop says "Dos?", asking me if I thought that was enough for him to eat and be allowed to be done.

I responded to her, "No, Tres", upping the ante.

Tara turned to Trevor and says, "Trevor, Daddy and I have discussed it and we think you should eat three more pieces, then you can be done."

Trevor balks at this and pushes his plate forward, "I don't want to eat three."

Now according to my offer in the negotiation, we have some wiggle room. I turn to Tara and say, "Now we can say dos."

We tell him to eat two.

The skillful negotiator that Trevor is, he turns to us and says. "I don't want to eat two, I want to eat uno!"

Oof! Apparently he has been watching too much public television and now he knows how to count in Spanish. We cracked up so hard that he had foiled our effort to speak secretly around him that we let him eat one and be done. After that we counted with him in Spanish and found out that he knows all the way up to 10! So much for speaking in code!

Internet Dictionary Project

The Internet Dictionary Project is an idea I have been toying with for a few months and finally got around to implementing. Dictionary-word URLs are some of the most highly-prized World Wide Web addresses. They are familiar and easy for visitors to remember. They were also among the first URLs to be snapped up by domain squatters hoping to sell them at a profit during the Internet boom. Now that the speeding freight train of Internet expansion has slowed to a cautious trot, it's time to see what's being done with these online commodities.

I've searched for a Web resource that would show at a glance who owns these desirable URLs and what is being done with them; however, aside from visiting each one individually or searching on Google, there is no such place. So, I've created a repository for this information and structured it for public viewing.

There are only a few entries so far, yet many sites contain only the blank pages of domain squatters or generic search pages. Like a seedy New York neighborhood, does the premier Internet real estate consist of vacant lots and pornographic shops? Where have all the 'good names' gone? That's what I aim to find out.

The Internet Dictionary Project

Prank

Last night, I finally revealed to Clay that I had been playing a huge prank on him for the last six months. Essentially, I stole his car about 2-3 times per week and moved it on him in an elaborate scheme to make him slowly go crazy.

Alas, the damage minimal, friends and family (mine and his) all congratulating me on a job well done, I am left with two thoughts.

1) What should I do next to top this prank? Not to Clay. No no. He has had enough right now. Besides, he is already planning on how to get back at me, and taunting him again might prove to be the straw to the proverbial camel.

BTW - I want to remind Clay that I was not working alone on this project, and that really all of this was Trevors idea.

2) What is the best stunt (legal or barely legal) that you have ever pulled off? How creative were you able to get?

1 month, 24 days...

Spider-Man Movie From Columbia Pictures

Read on...

I am sure that you have heard the details on the radio or TV about this horrific case. I am posting this because the circumstances and overall unbelievable nature of this fascinates me.

Details Disputed in Death of Man Lodged in Windshield

I also love that this woman's lawyer is making statements like this: "It was a stupid decision," Mr. Heiskell said of Ms. Mallard's failure to seek help. "She was evidently distraught and made a stupid decision. That decision was compounded by the actions of others who came to her home."

Of course she made a stupid decision. I would just love for someone who commits a crime like this or any crime for once to admit their guilt and take the punishment that they deserve. If I were a judge sitting on a case such as that I would appreciate the honesty of the defendant.

ARE YOU SHOUTING?

Here's a quiz for the manners-challenged of us. You know who you are.

If you have sent spam, forwarded email chain letters, or TYPED LIKE THIS. You are a perpetrator of poor Netiquette.

Little did you know there were rules for being polite online. Take this Netiquette Quiz and find out how much you know about tactfulness online.

I got 100% - I challenge you AOLers to do that!

Good Eats

Tonight was Merrills last night here in Boston. To celebrate we all went to the Boston Childrens Museum and then afterwards went out to eat to The Barking Crab. This place has a very, very casual atmosphere and some great food. Clay and I split a bucket of crab legs and I ended up getting some fried shrimp for dinner. They are located right on the Charles river and have an outdoor dock that is open during the Spring and Summer. I cannot wait to go back once it warms up. An ice cold beer, on a warm night by the river. Awesome.

Weird Person #3

Ok, so this guy is not that weird, but I am curious about people that maintain the exact routine every single day without any variation.

So, he is a blind gentleman, who comes into the train station every day at exactly 7:07 AM. He walks in, somehow finds this spot that is right in the middle of the floor (in everyone's pathway)

A little aside, I am pretty impressed with this guys ability to find this spot. It is one specific square that he stands on every day, but there is nothing within 20 feet of this spot to help him find his way there. He must have the exact spot worked out in steps, but sometimes he walks back and forth in the train lobby as if he is just strolling around and then goes to his spot.

Once he gets to his spot, he pulls out a walkie talkie and turns it on. He then begins talking to someone on it, right there in the middle of the terminal. I have never heard anyone respond to him, but he holds the walkie talkie right up against his ear in between his parts of the conversation. On the days that I wait for the shuttle, he is still standing there 20 minutes or so after arriving when I hop on at 7:35. Fascinating.

Microsith.com

While a user of Microsoft products, I still enjoy a good jab in their direction now and again. Go check out Microsith.com.

Do it now before I destroy your planet!

Playtime

Tomorrow after work we are all (4 adults and 1 kid) are making a trip toThe Children's Museum, Boston. On Friday's after 5 PM the admission is reduced to only $1 per person and they stay open until 9PM!!! This is one of Trevor's favorite places to go, especially the water play areas! Later.

Relationships

Last night I was kept awake with some strange nightmares. I had numerous dreams that I was suddenly faced with the realization that my coworkers and friends did not like me and in fact hated the person that I am.

While in reality this is not true (I hope), I was intrigued by the fact that I had them in the first place.

What could have caused me to become so upset (subconsciously) and concerned about the relationships I have both personally and professionally? Nothing had happened yesterday that would cause me to have any concern, but perhaps I missed something.

To be honest I have very few friends that are what I would call close, although the ones that I am close with I would consider being lifelong friends that I will always maintain a strong relationship with. I have always had cordial professional relationship, but they infrequently result in a relationship that carries itself outside of the workplace. Perhaps this was my psyche’s way of letting me know that it wants more socially from me and that I need to try harder to make some growth in that area. Anyway, I thought it was interesting.

Weird People #2

Today's weird train station person of the day is - Greaser Boy.

This guy looks to be about 35-40 years old and just stepped out of 1956. I am totally serious. Greased hair, combed into the traditional DA haircut (Duck's Ass); tight white T-Shirt; too small black leather jacket, hardcore denim jeans cuffed heavily at the ankles; and last but not least half ankle black boots. When I first saw him I thought that perhaps he was going to a party or something, but after three weeks of the same outfit, I knew. He was serious. Not only does he have the look down, he also walks with a "Greaser" swagger as if nobody should even try to talk to him.

Memetic Virus Scanner

As with any complex system, the human intellect can be infected by viruses which may ultimately result in your being banished from society for being to freakish or geeky. This Human Virus Scanner allows you to quickly scan yourself for any potentially harmful memetic viruses before you infect others with your nasty habits.

Apparently I need to get out of the house more and stop watching the sci-fi channel. What about you?

Six Feet Under

Yes. The time has come. Six Feet Under is finally back on HBO.

Yay.

Netflix

One thing that I hate is renting a movie, watching it right away, but still returning it a day late and getting slapped with a 3 buck fine. That is no longer a problem. A few weeks ago, we purchased a DVD player, which now allows us to participate in the beauty that is...

Netflix: Rent as many DVDs as you want for $20 a month. No late fees.

DVD's mailed to your home, no late fees, no mailing costs, and as many as you can go through for $20 (or less!). Check it out, and if you end up signing up, let them know that you heard about it from tara

Goodbyes and Hellos

After three years of loyal service, Betsy (10GB HD, 192MB RAM, 366MhZ) will be retiring to Trevor's room in the spring - the electronic equivalent of being put out to pasture. The days of Diablo II and creating Web sites will be replaced with days of Reader Rabbit and Magna Doodle for good old Betsy.

Bought with the proceeds from a sale of GeoCities stock, (back when GeoCities was it's own company and Yahoo was trading over $300 a share), Besty was instrumental in getting me where I am in my career today. I bought my first domain name, FTP'd my first files and experienced the intricacies of virtual communities with her. We signed up for eBay together, took a stab at PHP together and discovered the wondrous world of overheating Celerons. Betsy saw me make the jump from Paint Shop Pro to Photoshop. She took me from computer user to power user and she will be missed.

We'd also like to extend a warm welcome to Sadie (40GB HD, 512MB RAM, 1.1GhZ). We expect great things from Sadie - not the least of which is a home network, CD-RW burning, and a faster boot sequence. Sadie comes to Liloia Land from the great folks at Dell and her case is as black as her evil motherboard. Welcome Sadie~

People #1

Being a public transportation commuter now has definitely offered some advantages and disadvantages. Judge it either way, seeing strange people all the time is definitely interesting, and because I get to go on the same trains all the time, I see them enough to "study" them. I figure that there are enough of them for me to make posts for months to come.

Person #1

Birthday Boy.

One of the rituals that I have incorporated into my daily routine is to stop off in the men's room while I wait for the 5:55 Norwood train after work in the station. This tends to be around the same time every day and because of this I seem to bump into the same guys who also make this stop as well. There is a guy who is always coming out when I am on my way in, every day. He is pretty tall, and broad shouldered, and looks as if he has spent a few nights sleeping on a sewer grate. He is not offensive or hostile as other semi-homeless people can be, but of course he is crazy. His version of crazy is to carry around with him a small dry-erase board in the train station that lists someone famous' birthday. Although I find him a bit weird, I can appreciate this service that he provides to the world, and look forward to his educational tidbits.

BTW - Did you know it was Elizabeth Taylors birthday this Wednesday?