Troubles in paradise

And the strikes keep coming. The Reboot is in trouble and we're not sure how it's going to shake out. Mostly because there are lots of things up in the air.

In the main I'm doing good, although I feel like I'm stumbling around like the three blind mice. The coursework is still running in the A category, although for clinicals I might end up with a B. This weekend I need to be studying for the mid-term in positioning (delayed because of scheduling conflicts).

I do like the work. And I think I'm pretty good with the patients. I have a decent rapport with them (those I deal with directly). And while most times we're just dealing with pain, last week we had several severe injuries, bleeding, thumb sliced off, and a shattered ankle… the kind that elicits involuntary wincing when you see it in the x-rays. But all of which I could deal with. And surgery is actually sort of fun (although I have a limited experience, and the doctors I have been with are very cool, from what I understand there are plenty who aren't). There's been a few stumbles, but from what I understand that's normal. Several of the tech have shared their stories, include one of the techs I put in the category of "I want to learn from them" who said they did worse than I am doing for their clinicals. It wasn't until 2 years of being a tech that it clicked.

I've tried to figure out why I keep making small mistakes. Looking for where things are going wrong. For all of it I come to one answer. I'm blindingly tired. The day thing I can do in my sleep, and I think that's what I have been doing. My initiative levels are quite low. The only thing that keeps driving me is my damn work ethic.

But were about to head into the section of coursework that requires even more time. So that problem isn't going to get any better. So the question to myself is, is this a level I can work at or am I going to be so tired that I end up making a big mess of something (myself, the coursework, the day job, or the worst of the worse and my biggest fear, a patient). This summer requires 40 hours of clinical for 8 weeks. Right now between classes, work, clinicals and freelance I'm running at around 72 hours (before all the commutes, lunches, etc). How am I going to be able handle 80 hours? And how am I going to juggle that load with the day thing? There's also a few other things happening at the same time, all of which is going to be a drag on continuing the reboot.

So right now I have no answers. Next week we do a mini-review and we start selecting hours for the Summer. If I can't swing a schedule that allows me to keep my day job, I'm not sure how I can keep in school. I need the benefits that the full time job brings to stay in class (not to mention to pay for it). But I don't necessarily need the classes to keep the job.

But then what do I do next? Do I find another avenue for rebooting? Suckj it up buttercup and find a way to keep going? Is this the "time to focus on writing" moment/event? If I can't make the Summer work, should I finish the semester or just stop now and cut my loses?I don't know. Like I said, right now I've got no answers.

Linkee-poo, paranoia strikes deep, into your heart it will creap

Kristen Lamb wants you to know that "psychic vampires abound in the arts, and they’re also prevalent in many writing groups." While I think she's describing "special snowflakes", I have to save I've run into several psychic vampires in both writing and design. Everything is about feeding their egos, and not about the work. Once you've identified one, run away.

Writer takes typewriter to Starbucks and starts an online row. Actually it reminds me of Harlan Ellison writing while sitting in a bookstore window. Reading the story, though, reminds me that, yes, writing on a typewriter is very different than our modern word processing tools. However, there's nothing preventing developers from mimicking some of the advantages a typewriter has in software (like not being able to edit other than the line you're on easily, although that is only for later typewriters… my first typewriter didn't have an erase ribbon). I'm looking at you, Literature and Latte. Seriously, it could be very much like a "Write or Die" function. That'll cure that pesky editor. And it's not like you couldn't turn it off if you really needed to (maybe set the function to last for two hours, or until you restarted the app). (Grokked from John Scalzi who wants to remind you, you're not fooling anyone when you take your laptop to a coffee shop)

Help Random Michelle K pick a name for Ricky Martin's little siblings. Ricky is a metal chicken, btw. But don't fret, Michelle is open to listening to bribes to win the contest.

How the word has changed, St. Peters Square 2005 and 2013. (Grokked from Dan)

"When asked why he writes strong women characters, Joss Whedon, writer of the Avengers, answered 'Because you have to ask me that question'." On why we don't have superheroine movies. Plug this into the "girls can't be geeks" submeme and you can see just how far we've come. You haven't come a long way, baby. Why is that? Because stupid men make stupid comments like "boys won't go see movies about girls/read books written by girls/root for strong female characters/" whatever other bullshit you want to put there. The Real He-Man Woman-Haters Clubs are still in full swing. (Grokked from Tor.com)

Fred Clark has a great set of links that outlines the state of "gender equality" in the US today.

To quote a Tweet: "The award for Best Dad Ever goes to this guy, who saved his son the worry of coming out, with this heartwarming note." (Grokked from Phiala) Also noted today, our conservative Ohio senator, Rob Portman, has changed his stance on same sex marriage. He now supports it. Why? Well, his son came out to him. Strange how when people we know and love are hurt by our "strongly held" idiotic, ideologic positions we can abandon those positions. Rob voted yes on a constitutional amendment to ban same sex marriage. Rob also voted to ban same sex couples from adopting. Well, that only took two years from when his son came out. As Jay Lake says, "(N)o one likes the results of conservative policies when applied to them personally. Especially not conservatives themselves."

"It’s not that Finkbeiner objects to drawing attention to successful female scientists. She’s produced many of these stories herself. The issue, she says, is that when you emphasize a woman’s sex, you inevitably end up dismissing her science." The Finkbeiner test. (Grokked from Cat Rambo)

It's called de-extinction. And it worked. For ten minutes (actually not bad for a first run). (Grokked from Morgan J Locke)

Ukrainian attack dolphins on the loose, and apparently looking for a good time (although there's later reports that this may be a hoax). (Pointed to by Dan)

"In the modern-day insurance industry, it is illegal to redline by race and ethnicity… but it is perfectly permissible to redline by ZIP code… And wouldn't you know it? Price-gouging rates tend to target ZIP codes with a disproportionate number of racial and ethnic minorities." Also, having worked in the marketing space, we can define a lot by zip code. And if we know your zip code, and street, we can actually calculate the probability that you may need something like flooring tile, including the style, manufacturer, and selection of tile. Yea, industry doesn't need any stinking rules or regulations. (Grokked from the Slactivist)

Take back your lunch break. Yea. That'll happen.

"Fair is a place where they have ponies and merry-go-rounds." Some one tell me why the ass that said that shouldn't be placed in stocks on the public square for general ridiculing. Still think the rich are just like you and me? Okay, how about knowing that the ass-that-said-that's bank makes most of its profit from the public largesse. Understand when conservatives talk about never closing any tax loopholes, they're protecting that kind of racket. (Grokked from the Slactivist)

You know how I've said that the Pro-life crowd really isn't anti-abortion, but more concerned with rolling back feminism and the sexual revolution? Yea, apparently many of the major proponents also know this and say so when they think they're only talking to the faithful.

We have a Popecicle

I love how all the news is a buzz with how Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Archbishop of Buenos Aires, chose the name of Francis I. And how that refers to Francis of Assisi and how that means he'll be adopting the mantle of a humble servant. But that's looking at a very small slice of St. Francis' life. You may remember the thing with the birds (which it's often told from the viewpoint of his love of animals and creation, and completely bypasses that it was an admonishment to the church).

But I guess the press has never heard of this guy. You know, the other St. Francis. My guess is they will by the end of the week (or maybe after mass on Sunday).

Linkee-poo is all right, Daddy is all right, they just seem a little weird

Michelle Sagara asks if there's a "male gaze", is there a corresponding "female gaze."

Monday would have been Douglas Adams' 61st birthday. John Scalzi gives his take on the eternal question, "Who will be the next DNA?" As you can probably tell, I loves me some comedic writing. For the longest time one of my goals was to be the next Mr. Adams and warp inspire a whole new generation the way he inspired mine. But I agree with John that DNA was the tactical nuclear strike at the heart of comedic SF/F, and it's really impossible to think of the opening acts after his performance, and really hard to follow. It was just that masterful of a job. That doesn't mean there aren't pretenders to the throne (hell, the moment I fell in love with Scalzi's writing was when I ran headlong into an Adams allusion in his books). While working on the structure of "Post Rapture Industries" I went back and looked at the humor in the Hitchhiker books as a writer and home grown comedian and I came to the same realization John did, nobody can do what DNA did, again. First of all, even if you knocked it out of the park, you would still be in DNA's shadow. How he constructed his humor is really not reproducible (the fantastical elements, the non-sequiters, the diversions and wild tangents, just not possible). Even DNA couldn't follow himself. So Long and Thanks for All the Fish is structurally different from the first 3 books and the Dirk Gently books were their own brand of fantastic. It took me the longest time to realize that what I really wanted wasn't to write like DNA, it was affecting the reader the way he affected me. And that's a goal I think I can do. Finally, knowing that HHGTTG was the third (IIRC) iteration of the story (radio and TV came before the books) should be sufficient balm to all of us pretenders.

Want a sampling of the genius that was Douglas Adams' Hitchhikers Guide? How about 42 of the "best" lines. Yea, those are good ones. Not all the best ones, though.

Random House listens to the feedback and adjusts their standard contract for the previously mentioned imprints. And there you have proof of the value of professional organizations. So thanks to Writer Beware, agents, the BNAs who got involved, SFWA, HWA, and the real heavy weight in the room, the RWA. Not everything is perfect, but there's good progress.

"The book of my enemy has been remaindered And I am pleased." - Clive James Okay, so that's not a quote from the linked story, but that's a good description and reminder to all published novelists. Everyone gets remaindered in the end.

Spock tells you, it gets better.

Projecting gods and spirits on trees in Cambodia.

Glass sculptures of viruses. (Grokked from Sarah Goslee)

"And because it is not possible for them to disobey this law, there is no way for them to wind up 'paying fines and going to jail.'" Fred Clark pretty well nails Southern Baptist leader Richard Land and NRB board member Janet Parshall for the idiocy of their statements. The more I see things like this, the more I believe our society has an unhealthy relationship with the past. For the Tea Party it's the Revolution Fetish, for socially-conservative evangelicals it's the martyrs.

We have a Higgs. But it might not be "the" Higgs. I didn't know there was more than one.

"Overrepresentation in the Senate is among the reasons why the smallest states (and their local governments) received more federal aid per capita in 2010." (Grokked from Dan)

Cannibals of the Old West. (Grokked from Matt Staggs)

Fred Clark has a wonderful roundup of links regarding guns in society. So, why are you hearing about all these gun incidents now? Really, you've heard about them before. But they weren't big news, so they drifted into the background. Now that we're having a national debate, these smaller incidents are "news" and get bumped up.

Alligator Quotient: When did we start tangoing?

Linkee-poo is the one, the only one, built like an Amazon

Regarding my post on the Alibi/Hydra publishing contracts John Scalzi pretty much has some similar thoughts. That should come as no surprise, because I learned those lessons at John's bloggery knee, as it were. Although John explains the whole argument more than my snarky post did.

Five tips for working with editors. While mostly from a newspaper's standpoint, still pretty good things to keep in mind.

"You may be a novelist (and not a short story writer) if… Your short stories regularly top out at 8000 words or more, even after you cut them for length." Why, yes. Yes I do. To all six of her points. Well, I guess that settles it. I'm a novelist. Although now I'm making "You may be a redneck novelist" jokes.

Want to remember just how insane the Cold War was? How about this Bloom County comic. Yea, we actually talked in those terms, of "acceptable losses" in a nuclear exchange.

Archeologists may have found the Arkenstone fabled sunstone of the Vikings. And a little on the principle of how it works. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

"And it’s a question because legislators like Rand Paul and the rest of the overpaid, overfed louts in the House and Senate have made it so… Can the President of the United States kill you, an American?… let’s see, he can disappear you,… have the question put to you,… authorize active surveillance and the monitoring of your phone calls and emails and tweets and texts and social media posts without a review by a court of law… authorize the search of your home without a warrant or authorization by a judge… authorize the confiscation of your property if anybody thinks you might be engaged in terrorism… have you and your children strip-searched in the airports and put on a secret no-fly list… can make the library give up a list of the books you’ve checked out… authorize the secret infiltration of your church, your social clubs, or your school, for the express purpose of spying on you simply because you look like you might… be a subversive… can have you snatched off the street in a foreign country and rendered into the custody of another foreign power for interrogation… When legislators… acting in fear and rage and panic, passed the Patriot Act and the Protect America Act and a dozen other laws with secret provisions and draconian authority and have since continued to renew those very same laws, well, they gave the President those powers." Yea, see back in the aughts when the Tea Party was all happy with how the world was going, all those things went on. But it was only when a Black President had those powers that they decided to get upset.

We don't need no stinkin' EPA rules. I mean, it's not like we have 1200 hog corpses washing up in our rivers. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

One strike back at our robotic overlords. In this case, a Cincinnati judge rules that cameras used to enforce speed limits aren't quite kosher. Although the article, and the proponents, kinda mix up the ruling. Part of the judges ruling is, "if you're going to do this, there are rules already in place." (Pointed to by John)

Wealth Inequality Illustrated. What, you thought the election solved this problem? (Grokked from Jay Lake)

This is how you know where the rich people live.

Oh man, even the trees are in on the climate change conspiracy. Although, you know, I remember seeing X-Mas Trees at the North Pole in "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" when I was a kid, so I'm not sure these are "new" trees. Okay, well, the other joke that came to mind was a more obscure "last march of the Ents" gag. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

Weekend Linkee-poo in my mind and in my car, we can't rewind, we've gone too far

SF/F writers on Women's History Month, female authors, and female characters. (Pointed to by Dan)

Kristen Lamb with the 7 things confident writers don't do.

"So if a woman has sex and gets pregnant, SDCC says she must be fired, because people can see that. But if a man has sex and gets his girlfriend pregnant, that’s fine, because penis." A good Christian Community College fires a unmarried female teacher because she was pregnant and didn't get an abortion. But then tries to hire the guy who got her pregnant for her old job. Classy.

Wow. Well, first we had the "Riding the Manatees", which I contend is the new political version of "Jumping the Shark". And now we have Fox and Friends "riding the manatees." I mean, sure, they've been there before, but interviewing historical re-enactors who have a political bent (in this case, creationism) and asking them about modern politics. Did Jefferson cut the budget? IIRC, yes he did. But by retiring debt incurred during the Revolutionary War (which were short term loans). Also that debt cutting weakened our nation in the face of the Revolutionary War Part II, aka War of 1812. Oh, and there's this little thing called "Louisiana Purchase" he pushed through which re-indebted the country and was considered in the popular press at the time as a great mistake. Seriously, the guy can't even get the Declaration of Independence right, you expect me to listen to him after that? (Pointed to by Dan)

"Anti-abortion Christians in America are rightly outraged by reports of compulsory abortion in places like China. We have compulsory abortion here in America too — it’s just compelled by market forces and the private sector rather than by the state." Yet another chance for the Pro-Life movement to show us just how much they're all about reducing abortion. Again they're choosing the anti-femanist course.

"But why would you insist on privatizing a health program that is already public, and that does a much better job than the private sector of controlling costs? The answer is pretty obvious: the flip side of higher taxpayer costs is higher medical-industry profits." Again, actions speak louder than words. In this case, conservatives putting corporate profits ahead of public good. Again. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

"I'm not a publicist or an expert in p.r. but I think it's probably a bad sign when your rivals think it's hilarious to read your book out loud in public." Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli writes a book (said in a "Horton Hears a Who" way). (Grokked from the Slactivist)

"Let's put armed guards in the schools!" What could possibly go wrong? "A New York town that began assigning an armed police officer to guard a high school in the wake of the Connecticut massacre has suspended the program after an officer accidentally discharged his pistol in a hallway while classes were in session." I'm sure that didn't cause any problems. (Pointed to by Dan)

Conservatives deceiving their constituents over just exactly what they voted (and didn't vote) for? Why, that would never happen.

Linkee-poo was a school boy when heard his first Beatles song

Sorry, very far behind this week.

Just a reminder that next week the first of two comets for 2013 will be visible in for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere. Nobody knows how quickly the comet will fade, but for next week it should be viewable without aid in the western sky just after sunset.

There's a giveaway on Goodreads (not done by them, but through them) for Mer Haskell's new book, Handbook for Dragon Slayers. You know you wanna.

The more things change the more they stay the same. In this case the publishing industry. Although even today I think that makes former editor as Dutton an ass, but whatever. (Grokked from Kameron Hurley)

An old fashion take on what is art? Regarding my earlier comments about "art" vs. "communications", keep that quote in mind while you view the Land Rover ad (link at the bottom). Or this "most awarded ad in history" (no, actually I still think that's the "Is it live or is it Memorex" poster).

La Santa Muerte? An unrecognized saint, or sign of the end-times. Well, and that's the thing about actual religion, it's difficult to control from a central location because people will find what works for them. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

Pictures from a (software) developer's life. Hahahahaha (Grokked form Dan)

UltraEverDry? Okay, I'm intrigued. But holy crap it's expensive. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

Here there be monsters. Lots about early maps and bestiaries. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

Know why most of the rich industrialists (coughKochBrotherscough) try the smoke and mirrors routine when it comes to climate change? Because they have the money to weather the storm (they think). In this case, selling Land Rovers to the rich using fear of the weather changes. Know what 4 wheel drive does for you? It gets you stranded farther away from help. (Grokked from Tobias Buckell)

Alligator Quotient: to the Moon.

The Art of the, for lack of better terminology, Deal

There's a firestorm in the SF/F corners of these here internets. Apparently some Random House imprints decided they would attempt to buffalo new writers and use their good name to disguise the fact that their opening bid (as it seems they have made alterations to the boilerplate when authors negotiate) could charitably be called an overreaching rights grabs. Oh, and they ask that you give them your "profit" money first to cover their costs.

Random House was then pilloried by some of the more prominent defenders of the realms. And, IMHO, with good cause.

Random House, being the media savvy company they are, caught the sent of their good name being tarnished. Then they sent a response to the various defenders of the realm, putting their hand on their collective foreheads after falling to the fainting couch from the vapors. To be charitable, they did try to clarify their position and explain what they're doing.

And because of the tone of that letter and the not-exactly-advanced-hucksterism language used (seriously, using the language of SPAM and some of the lesser reputable self-publishing companies is not a good way to defend yourself from the charges that you are in that club) the ridiculing continued.

To someone desperate to be published, they may fall for this language. After all, Random House sounds perfectly reasonable and level-headed. Most people trying to get your money do, after all. They don't want to come off as the bully the 800 pound gorilla can be by not looking beyond themselves.

So for anybody who is thinking this may be a good deal, let me ask you a question. When they say, "When we acquire a title in the Hydra program, it is an all-encompassing collaboration. Our authors provide the storytelling, and we at Hydra support their creativity with best-in-class services…" they are specifically referring to their previous paragraph where they say "As with every business partnership, there are specific costs associated with bringing a book successfully to market…", and then they proceed to say they need to recoup those costs. Before you'll ever see a part of that "… potentially lucrative… publishing model for authors: a profit share." So Random House is going to recoup their sunk costs upfront. Will Random House offset my, or the author's, sunk cost in writing the novel? I would even offer to allow them to subtract their specific costs from my costs of writing the novel. You know, because this is a "all-encompassing collaboration."

BTW, I would calculate my costs at the rate that I charge my favorite clients for freelance work. You know, because we're "partners." That rate is $65 an hour. If I can write 2000 words in a four hour session, that comes to 200 hours for a 100,000 word book. So that's $13,000 before I add in all the rewrites and edits. Oh, and travel if I worked on the book at writer retreats. Oh, and my costs for Viable Paradise which helped me become a better writer. Etc, blah blah.

You'd do that for me, wouldn't you Hydra/Random House? You know, because we're "partners." Right? After all, as you say, "the publisher takes all the financial risk up front." I mean, I took the financial risk of writing the book first. That's worth something. Isn't it, partner?

Linkee-poo late, but… well, just late

Dear self-published authors, think Amazon is on your side? Think again. (Grokked from Kameron Hurley)

Jim Hines on preventing rape. Or, actually, our cultural warpedness that allows men (and it's mostly men) to inflict violence on women. Think he's being a little over the top on how society feels it needs to train women on how to avoid being raped, but then doesn't feel the same need to educate boys on why they shouldn't, maybe you should read this article on "why all the hate of Anne Hathaway." Those two articles mesh quite well.

Amanda Palmer's TED talk on the art of asking. Yea, that's going to take some processing.

Chuck Wendig takes a stab at processing it. He outlines some of the ideas that came to me as well, but like Chuck, I'm not sure that's entirely what is needed/being said. There's a paradigm wall I can't see through here. At least it's not a simple vision. As I've said before, the music business is not the writing business. So how Amanda Palmer is making it work, I'm not sure if it's a direct transfer to books. But how to translate it is not clear.

The difference between conjecture and real science? Real science continues to investigate even after they think they have the answers. In this case discovering that the supposed "gap" between higher CO2 levels and the end of the last Ice Age. Turns out the gap is either much smaller or non-existant. How much do you want to bet there's someone, right now (probably the same people) who are re-evaluating those results, gathering more samples, doing the thought experiments and lab follow up to see if their conjectures turn out to be true, and then double checking it all on the same subject and time frame? While it doesn't happen all the time, that's what science is supposed to do. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

A Spidey-Sense suit. Yea, I'm also surprised the article didn't mention the benefit to blind people.

Grave robbers in China arrested selling corpses for "ghost brides." Okay, so, just besides the "selling dead people" side of it, arranged marriages after death? More proof the world is stranger than we think. (Grokked from Matt Staggs)

A man claims he was nearly run over by a shoplifter at Wal-Mart, so he opened fire on the shoplifter's car, missing it a few times, but managing to shatter the rear window. Turns out his initial story doesn't add up once police look at the video. Also turns out the guy didn't exactly follow safe firearm practices. Nope, instead he ran out of the Wal-Mart, chasing the shoplifter, and then fired into the shoplifter's car while a bystander was in his field of fire. And if you think that bystander wasn't in any danger, I'll have you note how close the shooter was to the car, and that one of his rounds went into the asphalt. Why? Because shooting accurately in those circumstances is damn hard. Oh, and since the shooter wasn't in danger himself, but put himself in the position to be in danger, yeah, he's going to jail. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

And then you have the shopper who was refused on her $1 coupon threatening Wal-Mart workers with a gun. Albeit standing next to her car in the parking lot, but enough that workers felt threatened and retreated back into the store. And then she was rude to the Sheriff who pulled her over. Not smart. Not with a gun in the car. (Grokked from Matt Staggs) "But couldn't my mom beat the odds?" Another story on end-of-life decisions and even when the patient's wishes are known just how hard those decisions are. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

Going to jail to get medical care. Tell me again how we have the best healthcare system in the world. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

Random Thoughts

You know when a parent or some other adult figure told you to wear clean underwear just in case you had to go to the hospital and you thought they were full of crap? Yeah, not so much. And really, if you're wearing underwear you're ahead of the game. But make sure it's clean and not ratty or three days old.

And while we're at it, care for your feet and toe nails. Just saying.

I've been seeing the phrase, "We give the customer/consumer exactly what they want," a lot lately. Mostly this comes up in the context of a reporter asking, "Why are you selling crap to people?" That same excuse has been used by drug dealers and pushers of all stripes since forever.

Now that we're in the sequester, I wonder if the pain will be significant enough for John Boehner to get past his own caucus and get the Legislature working again? Probably not. And everyone talks about how "these cuts should be done 'smartly', and instead of cutting all the stuff that affects everybody, we should cut the waste and fraud part of the government's budget." Well, here's the thing. There is very little fraud and waste anymore. When someone says "waste" anymore they really mean "those things I don't support." That is to a certain segment the Dept. of Education or the EPA is "waste." Is there some "waste" in government? Yes, there is, but to correct for that waste you need to hire inspectors and auditors to cut it. Or, in other words, you need to spend more to cut more. Same thing with fraud.

I haven't talked about the reboot lately. It's not going well. Not from the GPA or learning side, but from the juggling a full time job, freelance, losing weight, and school perspective. This is hurting a lot more than I expected. If I were 10 years younger or 100 lbs lighter (but mostly the age), this probably wouldn't be so much of an issue. I hate quitting. And if I don't do this, I need to develop another strategy. I don't know. Maybe this is my "quit the day job to write" moment and I should take the time I'm putting into classes and apply that to the writing. I think I need to talk to a few people before I make a final decision.

Weekend Linkee-poo doesn't think you're right for him

Ten more agent submission questions answered.

Mary Robinette Kowal shares an online brainstorming session. It's great when you have friends you can do that with.

Neil Gaiman explains the "why" part of the creative urge pretty well.

Kristen Lamb asks how badly do you want the dream?

Some people ask "why all the hate for 'was'?" Well, maybe this will help explain it a little more. And "copula" was also new to me. (Grokked from Stewart Sternberg)

And how do you do the editing part? Well, Chuck Wendig helps you with a process.

Huhn, there's a third Van Allen belt. Who knew? (Grokked from Miranda Suri)

Interjections! As done by the cast of Star Wars. Thanks, I needed that.

And at least the Seattle PD has a sense of humor.

Gene Simmons never had a personal computer when he was a kid. Oh, that old snark. How we missed you. And also, We wish you a Reagan Christmas, higher taxes next year." Hahahahaha (Grokked from Dan)

When designers become too hip for their own good. Seriously. Design is communication.

"Using Sequestration to cut government spending is exactly like slamming into a wall and depending on your car’s airbag so that you don’t have to fix the brakes." Jim Wright is smart about the sequestration. The problem with all the cuts, especially for the poor, is that being hungry causes changes. More food later on doesn't reverse damage done now. Especially with growing brains.

Senator Grassley does accept the basic principles surrounding the abortion debate on the side of pro-choice. He just doesn't make that connection. That's one of the difference between conservatives and liberals. Conservatives have their principle positions, but make exceptions all over. Liberals like the rules to apply across the board. In this case, conservatives don't believe that the government should be invasive into people's bodies. Unless you're a woman who wants an abortion. And then the government gets to stick things in your body. (Grokked from the Slactivist)

Linkee-poo has been trying to do it right

The Oatmeal on going extinct. How so very true. As with most Oatmeals, somewhat NSFW (for language in large type). (Grokked from Dan)

The top 10 time killers, their causes, and ways to compensate. A long infographic on the subject, mostly for the design industry but also works well for most creatives.

"I know that doesn’t make a lot of sense. I think that’s the point." Robinson Wells shares his own struggles with mental illness. (Grokked from Writing Excuses)

The most insane rope swing. The point where I knew I was an old man was going to Nelsons Ledges with the nephews. The ledges are a limestone formation with lots of deep crevices and fractures. I looked at a 10' wide crack and one side of my brain said, "you could jump that with a running start." Then a newer side of my brain said, "That's a 30' dead-drop, the best you could hope for is a broken leg." Yea. I'm an old man.

Random Michelle's article on the Bitter-End. It's important to have those difficult discussion with loved ones about what you really want. Also, as we discussed in class with week, the joints where your ribs meet your spine aren't exactly meant to move that much. When you put a rib spreader on someone, besides cracking the chest, you're also moving those joints. Which is why people who have open heart surgery, or direct massaged hearts, their backs are also very sore for a very long time.

Gee, the prevalence of increased sugar in our diets is leading to Type 2 Diabetes. When you correct for other factors, it's the strongest correlation. Of relation to the previous linked to article regarding the Bliss Point in manufactured foods. (Grokked from Tobias Buckell)

Wiring rats' brains together. I wonder if they're serial or parallel? (Grokked form Miranda Suri)

"Evidence exists that a large natural nuclear reactor formed and operated on Mars… and apparently underwent explosive disassembly, ejecting large amounts of radioactive material over Mars' surface." More evidence our universe continues to hold surprises for us all. Plus, what a fantastic story bone. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

"Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)… lectured today’s workers that they needed to learn responsibility like she did when she worked retail as a teenager… Trouble is, she forgot about that old debbil inflation, and didn’t… realize the $2.15 an hour she was getting paid… in today’s dollars be worth significantly more than the wage Obama is calling for now. Even the minimum wage of $1.60 in 1968-70 was the equivalent of $10.56 today. So Blackburn was inadvertantly making Obama’s point for him." (Grokked from the Slactivist)

"For these conservative think-tankers, pundits and politicians, obscuring America's grinding poverty and spiraling inequality is an exercise in service of a status quo that works pretty well for them, but not for most families." Four conservative myths that were designed to keep us from dealing effectively with poverty in this nation. Make a post about Being Poor and you'll see all four pop up in the comments. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

Good thing to know that Crazy Uncle Pat is still truckin' on. This time, apparently demons can attach themselves to inanimate objects and be bought and sold. So it's a good idea to pray over your purchases before bringing them into the house. Also good to know it's still not to late for the WIP. (Grokked from Jim Wright)

The printable gun. (Pointed to by Dan)

"Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) has joined the growing list of Republican governors pushing income tax cuts for the wealthiest citizens of his state, and like those other governors, his plan would raise taxes on the poor to pay for it." Welcome to the class war. Alabama has one of the most regressive tax schemes in the US. How's their economy doing. Okay, how about when you delete tourism? (Grokked from the Slactivist)

Star Fish Cities. A little more weirdness of war. This time about WW II. Or if you like water, how about the town that spent 25 years underwater and is now re-emerging. (Grokked from Jay Lake)