We Saw a Chicken …

Author: scruss

  • Old Man Luedecke: banjo dude

    You might like Old Man Luedecke as much as I do.

  • why is it … ?

    That I always get sick when I visit Richmond?

  • Koolu: low-energy computers

    Dave sent me this. It’s kind of what I’ve been trying to do with Mini-ITX for a while, but at a sensible price. I suspect the fanless Geode processor is slightly low in grunt, but it’ll do the job: Koolu.

  • salvadorean scran

    All our usual restaurants were busy, so we stopped at El Pulgarcito at 1210 Kennedy Rd. I’d never had pupusas before; these little filled maize pancakes are the best. We’ll be back.

  • not-so-smart meter

    We got our smart meter installed today. Unfortunately, Catherine didn’t quite understand why there was a knock on the door, then her computer went beeeeyyooooww … then all our clocks caught the <blink> tag.

    While I like smart meters, this one isn’t quite as smart as it could be. To me, a smart meter needs to have a big display of your current demand, and needs to be inscribed with a suitable message like “Quit using so much juice, you cretin!” It also needs to hook into local time-of-use pricing, which me being  green and a Bullfrog customer and all, I don’t get to take part in. Boo.

    But what could have really gone sideways was my own desktop, which was quietly chugging away installing Ubuntu 7.10. Since I started using Linux in 1995, I don’t think I’ve ever had a system upgrade go totally smoothly. This time, though, I was lucky – the system must have fully initialised before we lost power.

    I can’t honestly say I see any difference between Feisty Fawn and Gutsy Gibbon; they both are fairly pretty, and just work.

  • big ole bagel

    City Cafe Bakery, at the corner of Victoria & Strange (!) in Kitchener has the best bagels.

    I hadn’t been there for years. Last time was with Steve Izma (typesetter and BTL Books guru) and his family, who are regulars.

    Being Scottish and consequently dough-addicted, CCB is heaven.

  • The big 14k

    Yep, I’m 14000 days old today (how old are you?). It’s supposedly the length of a biblical generation.

    Many people suggested ways I should celebrate (most involving ingestion of various ethanol-based solutions). It turns out that a company I’m working with is taking me out to the Leafs game tonight. There may well be ethanol.

  • the antidote to autotune

    We saw The Wailin’ Jennies at Hugh’s Room last night. As ever, their harmonies were beautiful, but what amazed me was their one piece in unison. They were so close that it didn’t just seem to be the one breath, but as one heartbeat. Wonderful stuff.

  • this is rather good

    BWEA – Google Map of all UK wind farms – wonder if we can do the same for CanWEA?

  • will self on uncle

    I think Uncle stuck with me because of its combination of excess, gadgetry and eccentricity – all of which are modes of being I have attempted to emulate in my adult life. I blame J.P. Martin.

    — Will Self on the Uncle books, from the Telegraph’s Unsung Books.

  • a narrow escape

    I nearly fainted at the guitar store; they had a Vega Folklore long neck banjo on consignment — eep! After playing it a bit, I asked how much they wanted for it. Seems that the seller thinks it’s the Pete Seeger model, and is asking about what I can get a new Vega Woodsongs for. No thank you!

    (anyway, two new banjos in a week would not be fiscally sound.)

  • cruel and unusual

    Black Eyed Suzy (files a domestic) [MP3]
    (and yes, that is a banjo playing)

  • oh and i went to high school with him too

    now this is a live music photoblog: rahimlive.

  • more banjo

    Got another banjo last night: an old Harmony Reso-Tone. These were the volksbanjos of the sixties, and though cheap, have a pleasant mellow tone.

    The one thing I will have to get used to is its very narrow neck. But hey, if a “Steel Reinforced Neck” Reso-Tone was good enough for Lee Hammons …

    I’m planning to put nylon strings on it for that backwoods tone.

  • auto-CC’ing someone with Outlook

    If you’ve ever forgotten to cc someone on an e-mail and you’re forced to use Outlook, this could be useful.
    Real example: R is an external contractor. T manages R’s company’s account for us, but isn’t involved in all communications with R. By setting up an outgoing mail filter, I can ensure that all mail I send to R is copied to T.
    The Rules wizard lives in the Tools menu, and the option called (I think) “Rules & Filters”:

    setting up a mail send rule in Outlook

    This particular example is made more complex by R’s having two e-mail addresses. Multiple addresses in the distribution list become a logical-or, so it works out. I’m not sure if I strictly needed the exclusion clause to only cc T if T is not explicitly in the To: or Cc: fields, but it works.

    Outgoing filters only work if Outlook is running, so won’t work if you are not logged in.

  • yecch!

    Under no circumstances should you consider consuming gum that’s sat in its packet in the pocket
    of a leather jacket for several months. It tastes of old death.

  • as tents

    Whoa, the Camp Combo rocked Mitzi’s Sister – in fact, they are still rocking it, as I had to head back home.

    Nichol brought his enormous Leslie speaker which added to the ‘jazzeh’ sound of the evening. It was worth lugging it down.

    Update: Fred Spek was kind enough to let me post the recording online:
    Fred Spek’s Camp Combo – Mitzi’s Sister, Toronto – 2007-10-16 (early set).

  • from a vibrating ferry

    toronto from the island ferry

    “It looks like Lite Brite”, said Catherine.

  • sound of a brand new world

    I’m liking In Rainbows. But sick of folks kvetching about the perfectly adequate bit rate.
    Thinking of torrenting flacs made from the mp3s under the guise of a perfect bootleg. Would look forward to the musos banging on about the much improved fidelity. Losers.
    But that would be too much work. Mustn’t betray the expectations of society on my generation.

  • quit reading this and

    vote

    … I know I have.