Try "New Meth"

According to: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090824/ap_on_re_us/us_meth_s_new_method The new methods for making a batch of meth require a lot less pseudoephedrine (Sudafed) and can be done in a 2liter bottle (that is, "litre" for the metric users among us). Since the process can be done with the amount of Sudafed that can be legally purchased at one time, does that mean those stupid rules will be dropped so I can finally buy cold medicine without having to go through more paperwork than is required to buy a gun?

On Snobbery- the book was better than the...

I was going to post about this a few days ago but let it rest. Then the Mrs and I watched "Blindness" last night. I'll leave you to find the fuller synopsis, but here be spoilers: man goes blind, blindness turns out to be some kind of contagion, other man is being quarantined and his (not yet blind) wife insists on going with him. She ends up being the only person in this quarantine ward who can see. They're kept in the ward by the military which is made up entirely of 18-21 year olds with itchy trigger fingers. As the population density increases, resource availability decreases and one of the members of another ward declares himself "king." He decides that other warders will have to trade valuables for the food and when the valuables run out there's a pretty disturbing scene in which women from the other wards prostitute themselves out for the rations. It's a movie about the human condition and how we'll pretty much release ourselves of our "civilized" pretensions once the shit hits the fan. So I'm checking IMDB and there are all of these posts that basically say "this movie sucked- the book was soooo much better." Yawn. Why do people still do that? Why do people still compare different media with one another? Of course the book is better than the movie. The author isn't constrained by budgeting, the special effects crew, time for filming, SAG requirements, or length of project- some authors spend decades on the ONE book they publish. I loved the Lord of the Rings books, but guess what. The movies were awesome and the extended cuts are even better than the theatrical releases. And I say this knowing that they completely left out several sections, like the middle third of the first book wherein the Hobbits get lost up north, almost die and are saved by Tom Bombadil. So yeah, if you don't like a movie, expand on why it's a bad movie. Don't even try to tell me I "didn't understand it" because I didn't read the book. If it's a bad movie and doesn't make sense, then I "didn't understand it" because it's a bad movie... There are words for people like this- elitist and sycophant come to mind...

A/C

How much of a nerd am I? Everytime I see "AC" I think "Armored Core." The wife had me order an air conditioner during the "heatwave" a couple weeks ago. Surprise! It's now cold as hell outside and the unit won't be delivered until tomorrow. But, everything related to the item has "AC" on it, so I think I'm ordering a fighting robot... wouldn't that be awesome?

Tone...

Ugh. I'm on the phone with an insurance company and the lady has that sing-songy condescending tone. "Um... okaaay. So what I'm going to need to do, sir, is place you on hold while I look for that. Is that okaaay? And you're going to need to hold the line while I'm looking for this... ok sir, listen. I found the information I was looking for. You're trying to tell me you sent in a corrected claim with the same doctor but different tax ID?" I really wish text could replicate the "I'm talking to a 4 year old who refuses to listen" tone. Drives. Me. Nuts... and I don't need to be driven, I can walk from here.

Adam Carolla

I've taken shits more insightful and culturally and socially relevant than this guy. And now he's publishing a book because he hasn't had a radio show to outlet his "brand" of comedy. I put "brand" in quotes because the only original material he has is ranting about no left turns on red arrows when there's no oncoming traffic. Yawn. Danny Bonaduce was the only interesting person on his radio show. But, he was mostly interesting because it's like watching a guy driving an out of control bus on a crowded street who's sure if he just keeps his foot on the gas, planted to the floor he can recover the spin. You want him to get control, but you know it's just a matter of time before he crashes into a Jag and kills a hooker... with the imaginary bus that is, not in real life...

different, but the template....

From: http://finance.yahoo.com/banking-budgeting/article/107468/latest-starbucks-buzzword-lean-japanese-techniques.html?mod=bb-budgeting "Under a new initiative being put into practice at its more than 11,000 U.S. stores, there will be no more bending over to scoop coffee from below the counter, no more idle moments waiting for expired coffee to drain and no more dillydallying at the pastry case... some baristas fear the drive will turn them into coffee-making automatons and take away some of the things that made the chain different" Um, wait. You're Starbucks, you don't get to be "different." You're the template for how a national chain of coffee shops can be ridiculously successful and the model which other chains follow or attempt to subvert. Until something even more successful comes along (I personally hope the bikini barista thing catches on like wildfire) you will retain your Simulacrum crown. In the meantime, grind me a pound of the Narino Supremo Colombian for a french press.

9th Floor...

What is it with people who walk into an elevator and just call their floor?  Today I held the frickin door for a lady who was walking a little slow and as she walks by me she says "9th floor"  And I just stood there for a second like WTF lady, this isn't 8-ball or championship darts... you don't get to call your shot.  Sure, I pressed the button, but it felt so servile. Another guy did this two weeks ago for the same floor, except he looked like a cheap ass lawyer with an oversized briefcase and a fucking cup o'Starbucks.   Maybe the 9th floor of my building has been leased by people stuck in the "old South" where this sort of thing is appropriate.  It's a small thing but it's like they're saying "I'm too good to push a button, but not you."