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Ok, so my Dad called me last week, and told me that he needed to get a couple of arteries in his neck routed out. He had a similar procedure done to his legs a few years back. But first, he was going in for a stress test.

Went in for the stress test, and they found some stuff that made them go hmmm... And scheduled him for an angiogram, which was performed yesterday. Before he went in, he mentioned that they might also do a bit of angioplasty, to remove the blockage that they'd found. But, he told me that either he or my stepmother Dawn would call me back when he got out of the procedure, to let me know how it had gone.

This morning, I had the sudden realization that not only had the procedure been yesterday, rather than next Monday, I hadn't heard back from him. In addition, I realized that I'd had a moment of complete nothingness, and hadn't gotten any information about what hospital he was going to be in for the procedure. Called both his home and cell numbers, and coudln't get ahold of either him of Dawn (my stepmother). Left voicemail at both places, then started calling around to local hospitals to try and find him. Nobody had any idea who he was, and I started getting really scared. Started trying to get ahold of my stepsister to find out if she'd heard anything.

And then, just as I was sitting there trying to figure out what to do next, my cell phone starts ringing, and it's my dad, calling me back. He was at one of the hospitals that I'd already called, but apparently they had forgotten they had him or something. In any case, they'd kept him overnight, because the angioplasty that might have happened couldn't be done because the blockage was too big. They wanted to keep him overnight for observation, and until he could talk to his cardiologist. Who walked into his room as we were talking on the phone, so he told me he'd call back with more information.

He called back a bit later. Turns out that they're going to have to perform open heart surgery to fix the problem. They scheduled the surgery for Tuesday the 2nd of September, and they're letting him go right now. My stepmother and my aunt Janet are on their way to go get him right now, and as soon as I get out of work, I'm going to go stop by his place and see him for a bit.

And, I'll be taking Tuesday off to be at the hospital. I hate hospitals.

Gahhh!!! Oh, and just to add to the stress, we've got piles of people coming to our house on Sunday to help build a raised bed garden for Alyse's birthday... And the house isn't nearly ready for them. And Alyse and I scheduled to be at my Dad and Dawn's on Thursday night for dinner. GAHHHH!!!!!

Current Location: office

Please be careful opening any email that is sent to you with an attachment, even if it purports to be from a legitimate company.

Recently a couple of virus varients have been going around, using social networking as more effective ways of getting people to open them. There have been two iterations of them that I have seen so far.

The first purports to be from AirTran Airways, and the text thanks you for purchasing your ticket online through them, and indicates that a charge of $400+ has been made to your credit card. It also refers to the the attachment, which supposedly includes your receipt and the ticket. Of course, most people want to know what the hell is going on, since they didn't purchase any tickets online, and certainly not for $400+ dollars. Of course, they open the attachment, which isn't a receipt, but is in fact the virus. And the virus that has been going around does not seem to be stopped or detected by Symantec Antivirus, even using the most recent updates, so that machine in infected.

The latest varient arrives as a message from FedEx, warning either that the package that was sent to you, or that the package that you sent, was not able to be delivered because the wrong address was given. Again, an attachment with more information is included, and many people seem to want to open the attachment without thinking about it. The virus included in both of these messages seems to be a varient of the Virantex (or Braviax) trojan/virus, and is remarkably resistent to removal.

Please be careful. There is always lag between the newest virus varients showing up in the wild, and the latest updates released by Antivirus companies. There is always the chance that you can be infected, even if your virus definitions are up to date. Do NOT open any attachments that you aren't completely sure of. In fact, if you receive a message from someone that you DO know, with an attachment, contact them and confirm that they sent you the message, and that they included an attachment, before you open in, and go so far as to confirm the name of the attachment, as well.

Viruses have been out there for quite a while. Generally, they no longer carry destructive payloads, but they CAN slow your machine to a crawl, get you blacklisted when they try and spam other people with copies of themselves from your machine, or slam your network connection with extra traffic. And they can be VERY difficult to get rid of, once you're infected.

Current Mood: cranky
Current Location: office

Your result for The Perception Personality Image Test...

NBPS - The Idealist

You perceive the world with particular attention to nature. You focus on the hidden treasures of life (the background) and how that fits into the larger picture. You are also particularly drawn towards the shapes around you. Because of the value you place on nature, you tend to find comfort in more subdued settings and find energy in solitude. You like to ponder ideas and imagine the many possibilities of your life without worrying about the details or specifics. You are in tune with all that is around you and understand your life as part of a larger whole. You prefer a structured environment within which to live and you like things to be predictable.

The Perception Personality Types:

16715388163861827773.gif___1_500_1_2000_7fa54554_.jpg

Take The Perception Personality Image Test at HelloQuizzy

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cristina-page/hhs-moves-to-define-contr_b_112887.html

I don't normally really rant in my LJ, but I think that this warrants it.

Apparently, the federal Department of Health and Human Services is trying to define ANY form of birth control that directly affects a fertilized egg as abortion. That includes not only the various day after pills solutions, but also the various forms of birth control pills themselves, which act on a woman's body to keep the fertilized egg from implanting on the uterine wall. Essentially, it would include any type of chemical birth control solution currently on the market.

Which is the vast majority of birth control solutions available to women. This would also include contraceptive foams, the implanted or patch forms of birth control, or IUD's... Basically, it would include anything but condoms. Which would essentially set the available forms of birth control controllable by women to... None.

Up until now, pregnancy has been defined by the HHS as beginning at the time a fertilized egg implants itself successfully on the uterine wall. This definition is the one used by the American Medical Association and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, who really should have a pretty good idea about the mechanics of fertilization, conception, pregnancy, and birth.

The HHS is trying to change that definition to be defined as beginning at the time of fertilization of the egg, apparently

However, by this very definition, the HHS will be defining any woman who EVER has a miscarriage as having had an abortion. In fact, it will be defining the vast majority of women who have ever had unprotected sex as having had an abortion, as in many cases, an egg can be fertilized, but doesn't ever attach to the uterine wall successfully, and is flushed out of the woman's body naturally. It happens, all the time. But the HHS, in an attempt "to protect individuals and institutions from suffering discrimination on the basis of conscience", is proposing that "the conscience of the individual or institution should be paramount in determining what constitutes abortion".

Not the conscience of the woman involved. Not the recommendations of the medical community. "theconscience of the individual or institution". In other words, anti-choicers who are trying to make the decision for OTHER PEOPLE. This is (if nothing else) a situation not unlike Pilate washing his hands and saying "You deal with it" over the abortion issue, and if nothing else, the anti-choice movement trying to gain ever more control over a woman's right to decide what is best for her body and her life.

I'm a man. My decisions on whether or not to father a child are limited to abstinence, a condom, or as a more permanent solution, surgery. A woman's choice is abstinence, insuring that her partner uses a condom, one of the chemical methods of contraception that are currently being threatened, or much more invasive surgery than I would have to go through. Taking away the chemical (and at least one mechanical form, that of the IUD) leaves women with abstinence, condoms, or invasive surgery. And none of those will protect a woman from pregnancy if she is, for instance, raped. Not many rapists are likely to stop and put on a condom in the process of violently attacking and raping a woman, to insure she doesn't get pregnant as a result. And of course, by the time a survivor of rape would have any possibility of medical help, there wouldn't be any option but "abortion", if this change to the definition of pregnancy and conception is made.

GRAHAAAAAAHAAAAAAAA!!!! Mother(*&(*^%&^$%&**^%(&^!!!!!!!!

Why do .. why does... Who would... GRAAAA!!!!

Personally, I think that most people have decided, at least for themselves, where they stand on the abortion issue. And most of those people are reasonably firm on whichever side of the debate they are on. I also suspect that it is rare that someone having a issue in their face in a very aggressive way is likely to change their mind and join the camp of those who are aggressively pushing the issue.

Every day, I walk about 5 blocks or so from the train to my office, and then from my office to the train. And about two to three times a year, an anti-abortion group lines about 3-4 blocks of that walk with 5 foot tall placards, one about every 8 to 10 feet or so, depicting aborted foetuses. Obviously, these are very disturbing images. Most of them depict severe damage to the foetuses. They also indicate where the foetuses were buried.

Obviously, these images are intended to elicit very strong repusion. I'm not sure if they're trying to gross people out, and then hope that their intended targets will say "Oh! I didn't know it's like that! I've changed my mind!", or if they're intended to try and shame people into changing their mind. In either case, my suspicion (and it's entirely my suspicion, with no support of numbers or facts behind it) is that these displays are more likely to strengthen the resolve of the vast majority of pro-choice supporters. And while I"m sure the counter-argument would be "Well, if we only reach one person, it's worth it," is it really?

My first thought it when seeing these displays is "Wow, that's really offensive and arrogant." And then I think to myself, hm... Should I counter their offensive argument by being offensive myself? Should my response be to walk up to one of the people holding these placards and start fondling their genitalia? Because, in my mind, if they're arguing against a woman's right to choose how to deal with her own body, and by extension, they're arguing that no one should have the right to choose how to deal with their own bodies. Thus, my fondling their genitalia is a reasonable result of that argument.

Or perhaps I should fondle my own genitalia. Since they're presenting me with offensive images, should I respond with my own offensive display?

But when it comes down to it, any response will not work. These are people who believe that by shoving their beliefs in my face, they can force me to change my mind. Unfortunately, I'm pretty stubborn. If someone presents me with a reasonable argument, I am much more likely to give it serious thought than if they were to start shouting at me. And while the people who are displaying these placards aren't shouting (in fact, they're all but silent, unless they are approached), they are presenting the visual equivalent of a loud, vicious, and accusatory diatribe.

If I respond by arguing back, I am validating the form and style of their display by giving it credence. In addition, the looks on many of the faces of the people holding the signs suggest that they are hoping for an argument, to give them a way to vent their anger. . If I perform some lewd or offensive gesture in return, I am both proving that I am no better than they are, and am giving them ammunition to use against me, in the form of "Look! See! That's just what we'd expect from someone who disagrees with us." And by ignoring them, I allow them to believe that their argument is valid, and justifiable, and effective.

How does one counteract an aggressive display like that, in a way that they cannot then turn to their advantage?

This is a photo I took this morning... It's a little different than the rest.
( Read more... )

I know most of my friends are reasonably tech literate (especially the ones who might be reading my LJ), but I wanted to remind everyone to make sure that they've got up to date antivirus software, and to run a virus scan. I've seen more machines infected with trojans in the last few weeks than I've seen in the last few months, and for some reason, Symantec's antivirus products seem to be hit-or-miss about catching them, or at least removing them.

I've been having good luck removing a number of them using AVG Free 8.0, which is a free (obviously, from the name) antivirus application available from Grisoft.com (specifically, http://free.grisoft.com/). My only caviat about installing it is to make sure that you do an advanced installation, and tell it NOT to install the AVG Security Toolbar, which will significantly slow down your machine as it scans all the links on any website you happen to be visiting. Without that, the installation is fast and the footprint is small.

I generally also recommend Trend Micro's Housecall, an online virus scan tool available at http://housecall.trendmicro.com. It will require you to install a java application to run, but Trend Micro is an established hardware and software vendor, they've been around for years, and I've never had a problem with them.

This is probably unnecessary for most people, but if I can help even one person make sure their system is clean, I'll be happy.

Current Mood: worried

http://mytreo.net/store/xproduct.php?xProd=1185

(italicized portions of the text my emphasis)

The Medis 24/7 Power Pack is the world's first UL and CE listed Fuel Cell for consumers. The 24/7 Power Pack is a portable fuel cell charger for Cellphones, Smartphones, Pocket PCs, MP3 Players, Hand Held Gaming Systems and other similar portable/wireless devices.

When a device's battery is running low or is discharged, The 24/7 Power Pack allows continued use of the device for up to 30 additional hours without the need for a wall outlet. It's inexpensive, convenient and portable.

Just Squeeze it! Plug it! Power it!

A fuel cell is an electro-chemical device that converts the chemical energy of a fuel into electrical energy. This is a clean, non-pollutant source of energy. In our case the energy source is powered by a patented proprietary fuel. When the fuel is depleted, there is no generation of dangerous, chemical reactants.

The Department of Transportation issued Medis a Special Permit (SP -14504) for the product so now users can carry up to 3 Medis Fuel Cells onto the airplane and use them in the cabin!
These are the only fuel cell to have this right.*

NOTE: This includes the Fuel Cell only. It does not include the required Power Management Cord or tip. The cord/tip for the Treo device comes with the Power Pack Starter Kit

WARNING: Due to the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 49 this item is shippable only via Ground Service due to being an ORM (Other Regulated Material). No Next Day or 2nd Day Air nor International shipments are processed at this moment.

Current Mood: amused
Current Location: office

The California Supreme Court has ruled that same sex couples have the constitutional right to marry in California.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/05/15/BAGAVNC5K.DTL

Full story behind the cut:
( Read more... )

Current Mood: happy

http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2008/03/24/what-will-life-be-like-in-the-year-2008/

A really interesting article. Lots of stuff wrong (I still want my damn flying car!!!), but there's a lot of stuff that's pretty acurately predicted.

Current Mood: nerdy

Just received this in my email, and confirmed it at this site:
http://www.isra.org/cook_county/isra-pvf_alert_01062008.html

( Read more... )

In short, there is an ordinance coming up for a vote that would force most if not all gun stores to close, and force you to register any handguns that you own. Except, any handguns that you own that are not already registered could NOT be registered according to the ordinance, and would be required to turn over to local law enforcement. It would also ban most handguns, whether or not your local gun ordinances currently allow them.

Note that this is up for a vote in Cook County, but the phone poll listed behind the cut does not require that you live in Cook County to vote.

So, this morning, Alyse looked out the door to the back deck and said "Uhm... Why is there a big pile of ice in the middle of the snow on the deck?"

So I went out to look. And this is what I found (look behind the cut for pictures)
( Read more... )

Current Mood: shocked

http://blimptv.blogspot.com/2007/12/new-bush-coins.html

Current Mood: amused

So, one of my clients has a business model netgear switch with 4 gigabit ports, two of which have failed. Netgear has a limited lifetime warranty on this particular model. So I called Netgear. I spent nearly an hour on hold, first talking to someone who confirmed that I was calling about a business model switch, then speaking to someone else who took the registration of the device, then put me into the technical support queue. And that's where the pain started.

After 20 minutes in the technical support queue, listening to (not bad) classical music, my line rang at the other end. Then, there was a click, and then silence. Then a few seconds later, another click... And the line went dead. At the time, I was calling from the client site. I spoke to my contact onsite, who ok'd me going back to my office to call them back. So back to my office I went.

Where I went through the phone tree, and got hung up on again, after 22 minutes and approximately 227 seconds.

Then I called back, figuring that they were having some issues, and I'd just have to try again. At which point, I was hung up on again... After about 22 minutes and 27 seconds.

As I write this, I've called back, and bullied my way through the home support division. They just put me into another queue. And someone just picked up and took my case number! And then, told me that they'd put me through to a technician. I fully expect to be hung up on again in about 22 minutes. But I've asked him to stay on the line with me, in case I get cut off again. However, it sounds like he's put me in the queue and disappeared again.

I'll see in about 21 minutes. I'm... A little pissed right now.

Current Mood: angry

Walked into the pizza place downstairs for a quick lunch. Said to the person behind the counter:
"Hi, I'd like a slice of sausage to go, please."
(oblivious) "Would you like that for here, or to go?"
"Uh, to GO, thanks."
(even more oblivious) "Ok. Pepperoni, right?"

Ok. I know that People have off days, and what have you. But she seemed like she was working very hard to get those little bits of information as wrong as possible.

Current Mood: amused

Mustang Sally, with Sarah Wilfong on fiddle--

Saturday Nov. 10

Sundance Saloon
300 Lakehurst Rd.
Waukegan IL 60085
847-887-0858
www.sundancesaloon.com

$10 cover
over 21 only
start time will probably be between 9:30 and 10:30 pm--they're pretty loose about time

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This show IS Windycon weekend, but Alyse and I will not be going to Windy, and we WILL be going to this show. They're a great stage band, and Alyse, Stephanie, Evil John, and I all had a very good time the last time we went.

There are some examples of their stuff at http://www.mustangsallyband.com/ specifically in the "Take a Listen" portion of the site.

The Sundance Saloon IS a bar, so there will be smoke. It's also loud, so we recommend ear plugs. And it's a country bar, so don't expect great drinks, unless you like the standard American beer/light beer options.

But the band is a lot of fun. Hope to see you there!

Current Mood: excited

I don't know anything about the guy as a person other than what is written on the youtube site, but this is a damn fine speech.

Current Mood: drained

Changed my layout, using the new Beta customization features. Makes it a lot easier.

http://www.livejournal.com/betafeatures.bml

Current Mood: calm

Due to lack of available life,

bammba_m has graciously stepped up and is handling co-ordination of tickets and stuff. Please contact her if you're interested in getting some.

Seats limited, going fast!

I escaped from Moonbase Greenmansgrove!

I killed Lil Ashy the red-shirted ensign, Birdfigment the red-shirted ensign, Rmeidaking the cargobot, Stephanieb the shapeshifter, Kitanzi the cleaning droid, Polyfrog the medibot, Ericcoleman the cargobot, Museinred the cleaning droid, Mgucciard the cargobot, Catbirdgirl the medibot, Bectod the medibot, Great O the maintenance droid, Shsilver the engineer, Singlemaltsilk the nutrivend drinks machine and Fiddlergrl the maintenance droid.

I salvaged a Veronica-Mars model hazmat suit, a Mycroftcaian deathblade, a COOL-T forcefield generator, a Bammba-M screwdriver, a Social-Cloud screwdriver, an STARSTRAF-140 phaser, a Mythworldian raygun, a HIREMEFUCKOS-10 plasma rifle, a cooltoyslithium crystal, the Log of the USS Rmjwell, a COMPUT-700 supercomputer, an Angel screwdriver and 228 galacticredits.

Score: 593

Explore Moonbase Greenmansgrove and try to beat this score,
or enter your username to generate and explore your own space adventure...

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greenman

May 2009

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The Greenman's Grove

Recent Entries

AAAAHHhhhhh!!!!

Tech geek warning! Social Networking used to get you to open attachments.

Mooo....

NBPS - The Idealist

You have GOT to be F**KING KIDDING ME!!!

(no subject)

Another photo

Virus warning

Bwahahahah!!!

Yes, I know I don't post often, but I think this is worth it...

What life will be like in 2008... From the viewpoint of 1968

"Mother Should I Trust the Government?"

Well... The water bill is going to be VERY large this month.

Bwahahah!

Apparently, I'm a masochist.

Had to share...

(no subject)

Nice...

(no subject)

Avenue Q - update!

Meme... Heh.

I escaped from Moonbase Greenmansgrove!

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May 2009

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