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- There should be background checks for people who want to buy pressure cookers.
- I got a new computer monitor, because my old one died after about 11 years. HP uses HDMI connectors for digital input. HP includes a nice HDMI to HDMI cable with the monitor. But my two year old computer doesn't have an HDMI output--it only has a DVI digital output. Guess who made my computer.
- I hate it when I update an app on my phone and it wipes out my settings.
- Putting my name in the title of your email does not make it any more likely I'll read it. In fact, it might make it less likely.
- I am amazed at how many brick and mortar stores don't put their address on the home page of their websites.
- I had forgotten how much I like Häagen Dazs Belgian chocolate ice cream. Which is probably a good thing.
- I saw the headline "Panthers' Newton practices 8 days after crash" and my first thought was it was about the Black Panthers and Huey Newton, not the Carolina Panthers and Cam Newton. I'm showing my age.
- I do not want ads appearing in my newsfeed on Facebook. In the past, I marked every single one I saw as spam, and for a while I wasn't seeing any. Then something changed and recently I've been getting them again--more than ever. Again I've been marking them as spam. Three times now Facebook has reported to me they have removed ads I've marked, because they failed to adhere to Facebook ad guidelines. Strangely, only one of the three was really objectionable--I think it was for some bogus weight loss product. There have been a number of similar ads, but Facebook seems to have done nothing about them. The other two were for Whole Foods and a political campaign that I actually supported. I wonder why they were removed.
- I rarely read any article that has "shocking" in the headline.
- If I were a conspiracy theorist I'd say the Big Ten knew that the only way they'd get a team in the national college football playoff was if Ohio State won big in the Big Ten championship game, so Wisconsin was forced to throw it. Since I'm not a conspiracy theorist I have to admit Wisconsin got demolished.
- I sign few of the online petitions that I am presented with, because most of them are addressed to people who couldn't care less what the general public thinks about what they are doing. Almost all the ones that I do sign are addressed to businesses. But even some of those fail to gain my support. For instance, I got one addressed to a bank which asks that it absolve a co-signer of a loan from his responsibility to pay it, because the primary debtor died. No. Not even though this was a student loan, and the student was his daughter. He was not just "helping his daughter" take out the loan--he promised to pay off the loan if she didn't, for whatever reason. It makes no difference that federal student loans are forgiven in such circumstances. He made a deal, he has to stick to it.
- It's amazing how many of my entertainer friends had pictures with Joan Rivers to post.
- I got some spam titled, "Would you sleep with a Married Woman?" Of course I would. I sleep with my wife every night.
- I'm flabbergasted by the recent jump in readers of my glob from Japan and New Zealand. I haven't written anything about either country.
- I'd complain about all the ice bucket challenge things littering up the internet, but I'm just as tired of seeing people complaining about them. I guess I'm just as bad.
- Is a recipe that calls for just the egg whites racist?
- I have learned two things about IDs recently. First, many countries, including much of Europe, require US passports to be at least six months from expiration for entry. Second, standard NY driver's licenses are no longer valid for entry into Federal buildings. This will also be true for airport security, but not until at least 2016.
- I'm always amazed how people will comment on posts without reading the previous comments. I'm not even talking about the ones where there have been dozens of previous comments. Are people so lazy that they can't be bothered to read a half dozen short comments?
- After seven years, I've gotten a new computer. It's an HP "desktop." Quotation marks because it goes under the desk, not on top. There are a number of things I could say about this change, but for the moment I'll just mention one, which really surprised me. I love the mouse that came with it. It looks like a zillion other black mice, without even a logo. It's a tiny bit longer and wider than the Logitech I've been using. I thought this might be a problem, but it's not--maybe because it's not as thick as the old one. But the big difference is the shape of the sides. The Logitech has slightly convex, slightly inward sloping sides. The HP's sides are concave. It takes a small amount of inward force to keep a grip on the Logitech. It takes no force at all with the HP--the overhang of the concave sides keep my thumb and ring finger in place. The result is all of my effort goes to moving the mouse, and none to keeping my hand on it. It's great.
- There should be a rule for all journalists: If you put a Manhattan address that's on an avenue in your article, you have to put in the cross street.
- When did "USC" start referring to the University of South Carolina and not the University of Southern California?
- My glob just passed 125,000 visitors. Thank you for reading it.
- The post office sent me back a piece of an envelope I had mailed--most likely one of my estimated tax payments. All I got was the empty end with my return address on it. I was afraid that I'd be hit with a late payment charge, but both of my checks got to the tax people just fine.
- I'm always a little angry when someone writes "Here, here!" It's "Hear, hear!"
- When burlesque performers have moving sales they post things like, "I will mostly have clothes, shoes, costumes, a few tables, wired shelves and a 6 ft tall carrot." UPDATE: I realize I have actually sat on that carrot (it's like a pillow). She had it at one of her shows.
- I could never be a plumber. For one thing, my arms aren't long enough.
- Fresh Direct sends an e-mail after they pack your order, listing the quantity ordered and the quantity being delivered for each item, the exact weight for the pay by weight items, etc. My current e-mail states that I ordered 2 red peppers, but they're only going to deliver 1.95.
- I just put in my application for a Medicare Advantage plan. Even though my prescription costs will be higher, I estimate I will be saving around $10,000 per year (after taxes) over my current individual health insurance.
- From the Jumping the Gun Department: An e-mail from McAfee with the subject "Renew Your McAfee Security Today" says "Security Expires Soon." My subscription expires on March 16, 2014.
- I'm used to seeing e-mails that start, "Dear [firstname]," but "Hi Default Value," that's a new one.
- One of the downsides to a cordless mouse is when you go too far, it falls all the way to the floor.
- I got my 2014-2015 monthly planner recently. I already had 11 events to put in. One of them was actually in 2015.
- Fedex hates me. I firmly believe they looked at a map of the upper east side of Manhattan and said, where can we put our drop boxes so they're all 9 blocks away from Caprice? It's this beautiful semi-circle with Central Park on one side.
- I received an e-mail asking me to sign a petition directed to a Catholic bishop in Wisconsin. I'm sure he is really going to be swayed by a Jewish atheist from New York. Not.
- Today I had my annual bone density scan. Getting strapped into position was serious (if brief) bondage fun.
- When I get a phone call, and I don't recognize the number, I'm going to let it go to voicemail. So if anyone really wants to talk to me, they have to leave me a message.
- It would be impossible for my wife and me to ever break up--we're such a good team. Tonight she asked me to remind her to put more Tylenol in her pill case when we got home. When we did get home all I could remember was that I was supposed to remind her of something. But that was enough for her to remember what it was.
- Retired WQXR host Lloyd Moss died last weekend. I loved listening to him. I wrote a post when he retired.
- Happy coincidence: We have tickets to see Andris Nelsons conduct the Boston Symphony Orchestra playing the Verdi Requiem at Tanglewood this summer. They recently appointed him their next Music Director.
- I see that the "open wheel" Indy race cars do not have such open wheels any more. They are now allowed to have fenders in front and behind the rear wheels. The front wheels are still fairly open. However, there are small, curved, vertical extensions at the end of the front wing, and there are little wings low to the ground, not that far back behind the front wheels.
- Following up on this, I just got an email addressed to "Dear << Test First Name >>,".
- I received an e-mail at my male e-mail address from a pro-women's rights organization to which have contributed in the past. It read
Dear xxxxxxxxx,
Have you ever thought about the ways in which you’re treated unfairly just because you’re a woman?
where xxxxxxxxx is my male first name. I guess they don't think they have any male supporters. Or maybe they just don't think.
- My wife and I got word that there is a parking space now available in the garage in our building. We applied for it in 1998 when my wife got a job in New Jersey, so we bought a car. At long last there will be no more hunting for a spot on the street. Hooray! The only thing is, my wife retired nine years ago, and we got rid of the car.
- I see that tickets to Radio City's Christmas show go on sale next week. I think that's rushing the season more than a little.
- I'm beginning to think that "ex-dominatrix" describes a significant percentage of the women in New York City.
- At the writing of this all the continents save Antarctica are represented on my recent visitors map.
- I'm always amused to get e-mails that start off "Dear [FirstName]."
- I did not name my blog after the bowling team in this TV show: ‘Mary Tyler Moore’ Historic Reunion on ‘Hot in Cleveland’. And I sort of doubt they named the team after my blog.
- My college basketball team, the Wisconsin Badgers, just got upset in their opening game of the national championship tournament. My choice, when this kind of thing happens, is either to want revenge, hoping that their opponents lose badly in their next game, or hoping that their opponents keep winning, showing we lost to a superior team. Since I don't think Mississippi is a superior team (we lost because we shot very poorly), this time I'll go for revenge.
- The Tonight Show will be returning to New York. For many years I was a pretty regular viewer, even more so after I got my first VCR in 1976, so I didn't have to stay up until 1 am to see the whole thing. I always thought it lost something when it moved to California. The big name guests stayed pretty much the same, but the lesser-known ones changed. Instead of witty Broadway actors we got television actors whose main attraction was how good they looked (Here's a dirty little secret: a lot of Broadway actors, including those in the chorus, are not all that good-looking--heavy stage make-up, and the fact that there are no close-ups, lets them get away with it).
It will be interesting to see if Fallon can bring back the old vibe. I've seen his show a few times, and he might be able to do it.
- My wife was carded when she wanted to buy a senior ticket to a movie. She was so happy.
- I went to the Leonard Cohen concert at the new Barclays Center in Brooklyn. A friend of my wife's invited us to the private suite her brother's company has there. It's very comfortable, but I don't think they should call it a suite--it's only one room.
- I really like Citibank's remote check deposit via cellphone service, but I wish they'd raise the $1000 limit.
- I just read a review in a high end audio magazine for a $2,200 power cord! The reviewer hears all kinds of differences in the music when comparing it to his usual power cord. I guess I'm glad I don't have good enough hearing for that.
- I'm not overly upset that University of Wisconsin head football coach Bret Bielema is leaving to coach the Arkansas team. I think he's a good coach, but not a great one. His time management decisions on the field have been lacking a number of times.
- My skills as a lawyer have been "endorsed" by a couple of people on LinkedIn. I did once do a little legal work for one of them, a friend. But that was about 30 years ago! The other is an online acquaintance who knows nothing of my work. The only reason I got on LinkedIn was because my LGBT bar association is using a "group" there to communicate with its members. In general, LinkedIn appears pretty worthless.
- My wife and I were relieved to find out that Hurricane Sandy caused no significant damage to the complex in NJ that provides the bulk of our income. They had emergency generators to power the sump pumps that kept the boiler rooms safe, unlike during Irene.
- I notice that I recently went past 2,500 posts here.
- I wish there were a way of filtering out comments from non-New Yorkers on NY Times articles about the city--especially articles about local apartments. Most of these people have absolutely no idea about how things work here.
