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| Holy moley, this is the BEST protest against airline luggage mishandling EVER. United Breaks Guitars It's catchy too. I have a new earworm, I think. | ||||||
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Blatherings
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July 7th, 2009
June 19th, 2009
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| Check out the insanely overpackaged thumb drives Corran got from Costco: http://consumerist.com/5294857/less-pla And the best comment there so far is the one suggesting that Corran should be on "America's Next Top Male Model." | ||||||
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April 30th, 2009
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| Infodump time again. I know that some of this stuff is probably already old news. Oh well, I share what I can when I can... Consumer Info/Activism Stop the Cap! Fight Back Against Usage Caps for Cable, DSL, and Fiber Optic Broadband - A blog tracking protesting activity against Time Warner and other cable companies who want to impose pay-by-the-byte style Internet access. If you live in North Carolina, PAY ATTENTION TO THIS (and anybody else interested in broadband access rights should as well): Save NC Broadband.com - A city in NC has a government-run broadband service (it still costs money (as opposed to being taxpayer-funded_, but is run more like a regulated utility) that's working quite nicely for subscribers, but Time Warner Cable is claiming they can't compete against it and is trying to force the state legislature to ban such services. There's a bill up for vote on May 6, so residents should be calling their elected representatives for support. Costco offer would fix hot fuel - If you didn't already know, temperature affects how much gas you get for your dollar. Fuel pumps are averaged, so if you buy gas when it's hot out, you get less than if you bought it when it was cold. Costco is going to change its pumps and its purchasing habits to stop this so consumers no longer bear the brunt of this. They're breaking away from other retailers and the oil industry to do this. Yay Costco! Going Against the Trend, Nevada Lawmakers Consider Easing the State’s Ban on Smoking - Soooooooo glad we moved out. This is just stupid. Of course revenues are down, you morons...it's a frickin' recession/depression out there! DUH! Here's What A Card Skimmer Looks Like On An ATM - Keep an eye out for these kinds of devices! Art/Craft/Entertainment Thanks to ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} kbpenguin for sending me this amusing link:Periodic Table of Knitting A clever YouTube video showing how Disney has reused templates over the years. Some people seem to be offended by this, but I think it's actually quite smart re-usage of old stuff in order to save time and production costs. Unless you've been living under a rock, this one's probably old news, but I'm posting it anyway because I actually cried when I first saw it: Susan Boyle - Singer - Britains Got Talent 2009 - I don't watch these kinds of shows because I loathe their revelation in misery and mockery. And sure enough, this woman - a perfectly lovely woman but not the kind of beauty the media wants us to love - gets mocked when she comes on stage, especially when she gives a little sexy hip-shake that would have been considered hot if she was underweight and younger. But when she sings, everyone who mocked her is rightfully put in their places. That's by far the best version of that song I've ever heard. I actually skip the version on my Broadway Les Miz album because I find the professional singer's voice irritating on some of the notes. I'd gladly buy a copy of Susan Boyle's version and insert it into my Les Miz playlist instead! Better still: I've read that she's been inundated with offers from cosmetic companies to do a makeover and she keeps saying no, as well she should, because there's nothing wrong with how she looks! Go Susan go! Science/Technology/Environment Zoombak Tracks Your Dog, Your Car, Even Your Children - I'm personally a little too antsy about the potential abuses of GPS tracking of individuals to ever want any kind of device on me or my loved ones all the time, but as a geek I'm interested in the technological aspects of this product, not to mention the fictional posibilities (let's just say that more than two years ago I had already planned political issues with this kind of technology about halfway through the Colony books). This is Your Brain on Facebook - interesting article about scientific examinations of brain plasticity related to Internet usage. How Green Is My Bottle? - Interesting article that lays out just how eco-friendly or not a reusable bottle can be. I do find it funny how people will jump on any eco-bandwagon these days without considering overall impact, and those type of people will frequently keep consuming anything with an eco-label well beyond their needs, thereby actually making things worse. As in, if you're buying a new metal water cup every few months to suit style changes or just because you love to shop, you are NOT saving the planet! Why Isn’t the Brain Green? - Examining why people rank environmental concerns so low on their lists of important issues. A reeeeeeeeeally long article. I haven't finished it myself yet, mostly because it's been hard to focus on it while on cold/flu medication. Study: Spammers scourge to inbox and environment - Guess that eliminates the argument that spam is eco-friendly because it doesn't waste paper. The Promise of a Better Light Bulb? - I'd consider buying one, if I could see it on in person to check it out. Astronomers Find Planet Closer to Size of Earth - Nifty. G.E.’s Breakthrough Can Put 100 DVDs on a Disc - So this means I can keep taking huge gobs of pics/vids of Peo, right? Parenting/Home Life/Food Scratch That: How cost-effective is it to make homemade pantry staples? - A really cool article about one woman's explorations of whether it's better to make or buy some foods. I love this. I don't generally read blogs out of lack of time but I'm bookmarking her blog in case she does any more experiments. Another Awkward Sex Talk: Respect and Violence - interesting article about raising kids in terms of gender-manners. Dark Sugar: The decline and fall of high-fructose corn syrup. - One can only hope. And it's not the same for anyone with diabetes or PCOS or any other health problem that super-stores fructose. Misc/Fun/Weird This Discount Store Enjoys Messing With Its Customers' Minds - warning: disengage mental logic circuits before looking. Bacon: the Other White Heat: You know bacon is delicious, but did you know it contains enough energy to melt metal? - Awesome. :D Ten Mistakes Writers Don’t See (But Can Easily Fix When They Do) - This is a good list. I'm guilty of a couple of them but I know I'm very good about most of the rest (I'm talking about my professional writing...no fair critiquing my informal blog posts, dig?). More writer-wannabes should read this. Most of the painful amateur prose I've had the misfortune to read suffered from all of these problems. | ||||||
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April 28th, 2009
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| 1) People of Austin: if you were enjoying the rain, I apologize. If you wanted sun, feel free to thank me. Peo wanted desperately to be able to stand in puddles so, amidst the rain, I took her to Target for rain boots (having never successfully found her size at resale shops). We were out of Target for maybe 5 minutes when the drizzle stopped and the sun came out. So...you're welcome/sorry. However, I also bought her an inflatable pool (figured since I can't take her to park pools when I've got a cast, and since we have a big dead spot on the back lawn anyway, that it was reasonable to let her cool off in the backyard this summer). I said we couldn't set that up while it was raining. So...that might be why the sun has been ducking in and out of the clouds. I told Peo it was sunny because we bought rain boots. I got a, "WTF, are you insane or something?" look followed by a highly doubtful, "Tsk, noooooooo." 2) How much do I love Costco? TONS. I got some prescriptions filled on Saturday but didn't open the bag until last night. That's when I noticed one of them was the wrong dosage. I just had Costco switch them all over to my new doctor, so figured something might have gone wrong in the transmission. I decided to call Costco first, figuring they'd tell me to call the doctor, but at least wanting it on the record that there's been an error. Well, the pharmacist says he could see that I was on 30mg but the new doctor said 15, and he can indeed see that they sent over the request to the doctor as 30, and he says the doctor uses an electronic prescription system that is no end of trouble for pharmacies because it's apparently incredibly easy to point and click on the wrong dosage, wrong instructions, wrong patient, etc. So instead of making me call the doctor, the Costco pharmacist is going to re-fax the request with a note that I had been on 30 and still wanted to be on 30 and as long as the doctor doesn't say he's forcing me to change to 15 (and I can't think why he would), Costco will take care of everything including taking back the wrong dosage. The guy will even call me when he hears back from the doctor. See? Discount prices don't have to mean discount service. We consistently get good service all over Costco, and I'm entirely sure that the fair wages, flex time, and other good labour practices Costco is known for are a huge part of the really helpful attitude of the staff. It means less money for the top people and they're all okay with that. Isn't fairness fun for everyone? | ||||||
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April 9th, 2009
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| Infodump time! Gacked from nightxade: My Little Darth Vader and the other pony toys bizarrely transformed by movie fan - These are AWESOME, and be sure to check out the artist's gallery too.Of 'Greenwash' and Image Management - interesting article about varying levels of truth in eco-marketing. Rocket Fuel Ingredient Found in Powder - as in, infant formula powder. Yum. This is so wrong. A few weeks ago I was listening to a science podcast and they were talking about how anti-evolutionists like to name ten or a dozen scientists who don't believe in evolution, citing that as reason enough to doubt the theory. Well, the science community's response is to be able to list 1000 scientists that do believe in evolution...all of whom are named Steve (or some variant thereof, including feminine and non-Anglo). I laughed out loud when I heard that! See Project Steve for more info. PBX Hell: 50-Plus Hacks and Tips to Get to a Real Person at Any Corporation in 10 Seconds or Less - Some are more potentially useful than others, but a good list if you hate waiting on hold. A FLEET of UFOs in formation has been photographed - on Google. - Hahahaha, it's a tabloid, don't get too excited. It alleges that Google's street view in London shows some UFOs. Well, really, after the Daleks and then the Cybermen and then the Daleks vs Cybermen and all of the other alien-trashing of London that I've seen on that documentary about that time-travelling fellow, I suppose some flying saucers is probably just routine to Londoners now, eh? Here's something potentially useful to other cooks out there: What To Do With Egg Whites Left Over Egg Yolks In each case, what can be done in terms of storage and recipes with the leftover portions of egg after you've used the other bit. I actually find that I avoid recipes that want me to use only part of an egg unless the other part comes in later, but now that I know I can freeze them...hmm... | ||||||
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March 24th, 2009
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| Infodump time. I wanna clean out the browser. 56% Of MBA Students Cheat Regularly Cheating Goes Global as Essay Mills Multiply - Most of you probably have heard my story by now about the student I encountered when I took ceramics a few years ago who argued that cheating, including the buying of essays, was okay because "it's not fair that some people are smarter or work harder and get better grades". Aside from that hopefully obvious downside of effort-based reward in public schools these days, there's obviously an increased general sense of higher education as a means to an end (a document saying you've been there) than actual education. I wish I could say I don't know how these people could go on to function in real-world scenarios, but having met my share of lazy-ass office workers and assorted sychophants, I can actually imagine that good cheaters probably do well in life by consistently cheating and sucking off of everyone else around them. Sad, but probably true. A Conservative Pundit’s Plus-Size Remark - "Criticizing a woman’s weight is one of the 'last frontiers' of socially-acceptable prejudice, says Meghan McCain, the daughter of Senator John McCain." Yup, probably. Energy Company Debits $1.28 Million From Your Bank Account - This is why Corran and I never sign up for auto-pay on anything. It just always strikes us as a dumb idea to let someone else access your account. Given how many companies we've had over the years pull various shenanigans - ranging from the cable company who splits your bill without telling you and adds a new charge you didn't agree to, to the home alarm company that won't cancel your account when you move out of town and sell the house because they'd like a few more months of payment first before letting you go, unless you're going to use them in your new residence - the very idea of letting these companies have direct access seems foolish to us. We like to maintain control over our finances, thanks. A lesson to marketers about the importance of reading the blogs they pitch to but who probably won’t read this because they don’t read the blogs they pitch to - Very funny. If I had time to read blogs regularly, this one would be high on my list because of entries like this. Wolverine toy, more inappropriate than Barbie - gacked from the blog above. Which resulted in her posting this. FTC To Require Advertisers Using Testimonials To Show Typical Results - Frickin' awesome! Woot! Best Buy Accused Of Paying Bonuses To Managers Who Don't Price Match - Yeah, well, big shocker. Yet another reason we're glad we stopped all Best Buy shopping back when they came out with their "demon customer" crap, since we're total demons, according to them. | ||||||
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March 7th, 2009
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| Disguised As Dishcloths Pile, Man Hides Inside IKEA And when someone posted that they wanted him to have jumped out and scared people, this was my response:
Given that it's made me stop and think about the relative insanity of a store having SO MANY dishcloths - and now I'm thinking about the IKEA here and other similar bins full of rugs, ice cube trays shaped like fish, etc - and it is all kind of an orgy of manufacturing and consumption all manifested in one big pile of stuff that most people just walk by without noticing. I guess, since I'm thinking about it now in a way I never did before, that means the art was successful? I usually think most performance art is pretentious crap but I guess this one affected me. Mind you, I'll still be shopping at IKEA. But I guess now I might be more mindful of the vast quantities of things people probably don't need (although I have kind of always wanted the ice cube trays shaped like puzzle pieces, but I never buy it because I can't really justify it). | ||||||
| comments: 9 comments or Leave a comment |
March 5th, 2009
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| This is my first day with Peo in school that I don't need to be working on cake show stuff. So it's time to clean out the browser (so here comes an infodump), run updates, get rid of Norton and install Avast, etc. Maybe I'll even get time to deal with the mountain of unanswered email. Hahahahaha...nnnrgh. Let's begin the infodump! High Fructose Corn Syrup ATTN: HFCS Haters. Get Ready For Sugar-Sweetened "Pepsi Throwback" Snapple To Switch To Real Sugar Instead Of HFCS And another bit of info: some of you may recall that I've posted multiple times about trying different cereals to make rice krispies treats without the HFCS-laden actual Rice Krispies. Well, there's a new version of Rice Krispies called "Jumbo" which are allegedly "multi-grain", but more importantly, do NOT have HFCS! I have already found a box at my local store and acquired it for treat-making to come. Will report on results at the time. Consumer Stuff Best Buy Sells Busted Cam As New, Blames You. Oops! Employee Pix! - Yet another reason we no longer shop at Best Buy, and haven't for years. Going To The Doc? Be Sure You Don't Sign A Gag Order - putting this one under Consumer because it's less about medical and more about not being dumb enough to sign away your rights. Seriously, people, don't ever sign NDAs or gag orders unless you really do agree with them and are 100% sure you're okay with never changing your mind on that. Signing away your right to speak is almost never in your interest. Science Pen Mightier Than Passion - 60-Second Science - I actually haven't listened to this yet, but the blurb was interesting enough for me to go start downloading the entire podcast series for later listening. And while I'm linking that, let me also mention that I made a lot of that cake show cake while listening to old podcasts of Radio Lab. I'm only up to March 2008, but it's been fascinating. It's the kind of show with so much information that after a few of them, I need to take a break because my brain gets too full. I'm sure my fellow nerds will enjoy it. Natural Explanation Found for UFOs - "Mysterious UFO sightings may go hand in hand with a puzzling natural phenomenon known as sprites - flashes high in the atmosphere triggered by thunderstorms." Groovy. FIRST PHOTOS: Weird Fish With Transparent Head - Coooooooooooooooooooooooooool! Snow Flakes and Snow Crystals - some pretty spiffy piccies. Gorgeous stuff. Dry cleaning without solvents - Please note that this is a PRESS RELEASE, not an article, so it is heavily biased. However, I find it very interesting and do hope that the claims they're making are true and if they are, that they have great success in spreading the technology. Although I don't buy dry-clean-only clothes, so it doesn't affect me personally much. Parenting 3 Ways To Cut Baby Costs Without Feeling Like A Terrible Parent - Plus they've missed some obvious ones like breastfeeding if you can, using cloth diapers if you can afford the initial cost, and only buying infant clothes on resale. Police cite breast-feeding driver for endangering - Mmmkay I'm all for breastfeeding, but this is just stoooopid. Sheesh. If your kid needs boob NOW NOW NOW, frickin' pull over, idiot. Crafts/Art/Theatre What happens when you get married and most of your friends are into musical theatre gacked from bnwrenTHE ARTFULL BRAS PROJECT - fancy bras made for fundraising. Definite works of art in there. I guess this might not be considered work safe if you work with prudes. Knitters turn to graffiti artists with 'yarnbombing' - I love it, especially because unlike paint, it's relatively easy to remove if it offends the property owner. With a Knitting Needle Piercing Her Heart, Keeping Cool Saved Ellin Klor’s Life - Twice - Double meep. I've been extra-paranoid about how I carry and store my needles since reading this. Misc Supreme Court Rules For Injured Consumer In Big Pharma Case - this is an update on a story I've linked to before about a musician whose arm was amputated after the wrong application of a drug in a hospital. Short version: she won the case. Man Living in Cave Faces Foreclosure - but what really interested me were the photos of this incredible house they built into the cave. That'd be awesome for energy efficiency since caves take the median temperature of the area. It'd be warm in the winter and cool in the summer. And quiet too. Ooo I want one. :) 25 Years of Growth in Las Vegas as seen from space - from indomitability. Not surprising, since Vegas is one of those places where if you drive by an empty bit of desert one month, it's likely to be a suburb or strip mall the next. We've only been gone for about 9 months but I guarantee you if we went back right now, there'd be stuff built we don't even recognize. It can make the slow-to-update Google satellite maps useless for finding a friend's house. Hell, even the street maps aren't updated fast enough for Vegas. Oh, and that's just a small view of the area, probably showing Vegas proper. Even though our address was listed as being in Las Vegas, we weren't actually in the city, and our house isn't even on those photos. There's so much more sprawl beyond what this shows."My iPhone Is Missing, And Some Guy Is Taking Pics Of Himself With It!" - I'm posting this not really because of the actual story, although that is interesting, but primarily because of this line of advice: "Before losing the phone, his dad set up a rule where any email sent from the phone blind-cc'ed his personal email address, which we think is a pretty brilliant low-tech security solution for tracking down a lost/stolen phone or laptop." Those with portable devices such as these might want to consider such a setup. A Colorado school district does away with grade levels - An interesting approach, especially since this is what I've learned a lot of gifted private schools do. I'm curious to see how it works out long-term. Arbitrary regulations on age and groupings are convenient but almost never great for all the kids involved. The Crisis of Credit Visualized - an interesting little movie that sums up how the credit crisis came to be. Forget the G-string - can ANYONE wear the new C-string? - Meep. | ||||||
| comments: 7 comments or Leave a comment |
February 7th, 2009
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| Infodump time....my browser was getting too crowded and slow. No particular order because I'm swamped and tired. How To Not Get Sued For What You Said On Yelp - tips on how to word reviews that you post publicly to make sure you don't get sued. This would go for your own blog as well, if the post(s) are open. How Unscrupulous Food Manufacturers Manipulate Lab Tests - Mmmm. Yum. Four Reasons Not To Book Your Hotel Room Through A Third-Party Site 1 family gets 445 credit card offers in a year - That sounds about right for our Vegas address. They haven't all caught up with us here yet, or else the credit crisis has made the numbers drop off. Bank Of America Blames You And Your Dead Mother For Financial Crisis - Mostly posting this as a warning: don't let banks or other creditors intimidate you into paying the debts of deceased loved ones. If you're unsure of your rights, check with a lawyer or government body first. The New Healthcare Crisis: When Having Health Insurance Isn't Enough - More examples of undercoverage and some tips on what to do about it. I LEGO N.Y. - Very amusing little interpretations of New York in Lego. Also check out some of the other entries linked in the sidebar on the right. Cash4Gold Will Offer One-Third of the Actual Value for your Gold - Just in case anyone reading is actually naive enough to buy into such an obvious scam, read this. And the update. Sheesh. Is This The World's Best Airline Complaint Letter? - Definitely worth the read. Less articulate but equally amusing is this one. Check this out...Costco now sells cloth diaper bundles! Not the kind we use, but this does mean that cloth diapering must have hit some level of mainstream usage high enough to entice Costco into supplying them. Very interesting! (Note: I have no idea if this is actually a good deal on the diapers or not since we don't use these kinds. I'm not necessarily recommending it as a good deal, although it might be, I'm just saying it's interesting that they're sold there at all.) 26 Cakes Perfect for Geeks - From giantbedsprings, a list of some very awesome geeky cakes.Paper or Plastic? Binary Man Has the Answer, Sort Of. - Some of the deeper issues with the choice between paper and plastic bags; a good illustration of why so many eco-issues are complicated and shouldn't be taken lightly by those who have a marketing agenda. And we were definitely re-using plastic bags for garbage disposal until we made the switch to bringing our own cloth, so now we have to buy new plastic (the recycled ones are just far, far, far too expensive to justify the difference)...which is more wasteful? I'm not sure. But I do hate having to use larger bags because the garbage sits in the kitchen longer, getting smellier, and even when we get composting, it won't help because the biggest stink comes from cut off bits of fat and disposed chicken bones. Rhodes Scholar's 'Goofy' Ideas Slashed Energy Costs at College House in Half - I especially like the bit about being eco-friendly instead of eco-fascist. Reclining Produce | ||||||
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January 28th, 2009
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| If you Google around about Rival Crock Pots and lead, you'll find tons of links saying that there is lead in the glaze of the ceramic portion. A reporter even had some tested a few years ago and apparently found that there was not only lead in the glaze, but that under heating conditions it was coming out into the food. Since reading that some time ago, Corran and I have stopped using our Crock Pot. I emailled Rival about it months and months ago, at least twice. I asked them to confirm or deny the rumours. I never heard back. I had been meaning to send them a letter, but kept forgetting or not having enough time. But this week I sat down to finally do it, only to discover that their website no longer has their mailing address. They want you to phone for it, and the phone message doesn't include the address; you have to call during business hours (Eastern Time) and actually speak to a representative. So today I did just that. I sat with a Notepad window open to record the information. Disclaimer: I'm a pretty fast typist but when I type notes during conversation, it is possible that the occasional word is not exact or in precise order. However, I will firmly attest to the overall accuracy and meaning of this transcription. January 28, 2009 First phone call placed at 2:42 pm CST. After going through opening menu, the call is dropped. 2:44 pm CST, I call back and go through the menu again. I am placed in the queue to talk to a representative. I listen to the music and become amused to hear the Split Enz song "I Got You" come on. For kicks I type out some of the lyrics that eerily match how I feel about lead in my Crock Pot: Something's wrong, I feel uneasy You show me, tell me you're not teasing ... I don't know why sometimes I get frightened You can see my eyes Can you tell me you're not lying? At 2:52 Kaisha answers. I explain to her that my emails have been unanswered and she apologizes for this. I say that I know it's not her fault, but that I'd like a firm answer on my question. "I've read online that Rival Crock Pots have lead in the glaze of the ceramic portion," I said. "No Ma'am," she said. "No?" I asked. "There is no lead in our products," she said. "No lead at all?" I asked. "It's under the FDA regulation," she said. "Oh, so there is some lead but it's an allowable amount under the FDA regulation?" I asked. She stammered for a moment, then said, "It's in the regulation...um, you know, I can look that up. I was just looking...can I put you on hold for a moment? It'll just be a moment while I look that up for you." I said okay. She thanked me. There was a click, then the busy signal. The call had been dropped again. At 2:53 I called back and once again was put in the queue. Once more, the music was oddly apropos, so I typed out some more lyrics, this time from "Things Can Only Get Better" by Howard Jones: And do you feel scared? I do! But I won't stop and falter And if we throw it all away Things can only get better Indeed, we've been wondering if we should throw the Crock Pot away if it has lead, because it's not good to put lead into the landfill, but we couldn't in good conscience Freecycle it or donate it, so we don't know what to do if it has lead. At 3:01 Jessica picked up the call. I explained the backstory again, including that the call with Kaisha had been dropped. "What I really want to know is if there's any lead in the Crock Pot glaze," I said. "I'm pretty sure there's not, but I can check for you. Can I put you on hold for a second?" Jessica asked. "Okay, but I hope I won't get disconnected again," I said. "Oh no, you won't. Just a sec." At 3:02 she came back. "Sorry about that. No there is not. The FDA checks all of our pots," she said. "Okay, but is there lead and it's just less than the FDA allowable amount, or are they certified lead-free?" "There's no lead at all." "Wow, okay, that contradicts what I've read online. Thanks." "Thank you ma'am. Have a nice day." Then Jessica hung up before I had a chance to remember to ask for the postal address. I want to make it clear that both reps were pleasant, and I don't think Kaisha meant to disconnect the call. I think their phone system is just wonky (and their music system highly ironic). So there you have it: their customer service representatives say they're lead-free, although didn't confirm being certified lead-free. They're saying that they don't have any lead at all, not just less than the FDA allowable amount (which, according to the link above, is anything less than 2.0 ppm). The thing is, I'm not sure I believe it; not enough to risk my family's health. So I'm not sure what I should do next. Do I bother to waste the time and money on a lead testing kit? The Consumer Reports article about lead test kits from September 2008 was for testing your home's paint, not ceramic glaze, so I don't even know if that information applies, but they indicated that they weren't the easiest things in the world to use. Maybe I should send a letter to Consumer Reports to ask. Perhaps I'll start with the Consumerist blog since Consumer Reports bought them recently. Beyond that, I don't suppose there's anyone reading who has the ability to conclusively test for lead in a glaze who wants to go ahead and run the test and share the results with us? | ||||||||
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January 26th, 2009
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| In case there's anybody left who needs convincing that high fructose corn syrup is bad for you... Study Finds High-Fructose Corn Syrup Contains Mercury And in case anyone is buying into the HFCS industry ads that talk about "small amounts in moderation", do go through your pantry and note how many of your foods contain it. When it's in the bread, the breakfast cereal, the jam, the peanut butter, the pasta sauce, the soup, the condiments, the pre-made frozen and boxed foods, and of course the desserts, you're not eating it in moderation, you're eating it all day long unless you're actively seeking foods that do not contain it. So even if only half of it is contaminated, that's a lot of mercury. | ||||||
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January 19th, 2009
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| Why it's always important to be able to do your own math if you want to save money: Do Not Think About Walmart's Milk Pricing Scheme Or Risk Brain Injury It basically shows that the 2-for price is MORE than the single unit price, and that the smaller size costs significantly more per amount (although to be fair, that's not abnormal). Attention Walmart shoppers: this store (and others too) assume you are STUPID. They make money by claiming to have low prices and count on the fact that you will not check! The truly frugal shopper does at least a minor amount of occasional cost comparison! Walmart has been shown in multiple studies, including several by Consumer Reports over the years, to actually be midline on prices, NOT consistently low! More and more, this sort of thing is becoming a tax on the ill-educated and/or lazy-minded. Be smart, people: check the prices, check the expiry dates, pay attention, do the math. | ||||||
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| We frequently use Amazon customer reviews of products in determining purchases, even ones we don't purchase on Amazon. We try to be smart readers, filtering out the obviously stupid ones, such as people making irrelevant political points (like on the sex ed books, people who are clearly anti-sex-ed calling it porn), people who didn't quite get it (faulting Futurama for not having any funny jokes are probably too under-educated to get the vast number of math/science jokes), those who clearly had the wrong expectation (complaints that a TMBG kids' album is too kiddie), etc. We pay more attention to detail rather than single sentence, we look for experiences that are likely to match our own, that sort of thing. And we know that ratings can be skewed by fans or even those who make the product. It's not uncommon on author groups I'm part of for an author with a new book to beg the rest of us to go give a positive review even though we can't have possibly read it yet, and I know of authors who get their friends and family to give them positive reviews in the same way (although those reviews will generally lack sufficient substance to sway the savvy customer). I suppose I'm guilty to a small extent, because when some nasty people who were mad at me about something personal posted negative reviews of my book - which had gone out of print and the chances were very slim that they gotten a copy - I mentioned this on an author's group and a bunch of well-meaning author friends went and all marked the reviews as unhelpful. I didn't ask them to, but I did ask Amazon to remove them as false reviews and Amazon refused. Point is, Amazon reviews can be useful but you need to be careful. And don't just take my word for it: Belkin Caught Paying For Positive Reviews Amazon really needs to do something to clean up the reviews. They need a way to stop those who directly stand to profit from a sale from reviewing unless it's marked as a conflict of interest. I have not reviewed my own book, but I used the proper Amazon method to have an Author's Description inserted on the page and it's labelled as such (and incidentally, I don't know if they've made that easier but man oh man it was a pain in the ass back in 2004 to find the proper way to do that!). Too many authors review their own books without it being clearly labelled; some ethical authors make it clear in the review, others make themselves sound like a customer. There needs to be an easy and clear way for ethical authors/publishers/manufacturers/etc to add information that's clearly labelled so the bias is known, and a way to stop fraudulent reviews, especially the paid kind as described in the article above. I've seen past Consumerist stories about other companies trying to bribe people who have posted negative reviews to remove the reviews in exchange for a fix to the problem or better. That could be resolved by making reviews amendable but not removable, akin to the ebay system. Unfortunately, I can't think of how Amazon could realistically stop fraudulent or paid reviews. How are they going to know if Company A has paid me to make a positive review? How do they know I don't have a friend who works for Company A? I believe you can't make a review unless you've made any kind of purchase at least once, in order to stop people from just making endless accounts, but still, maybe you shouldn't be able to review unless you've made recent purchases, or possibly even purchased the product through them. Then again, that wouldn't stop companies from buying from themselves and it would stop potentially useful reviews from someone who bought a product elsewhere and has something valuable to say. I don't know. I guess the burden falls on the customers to read with increasing diligence, and occasionally get shafted. And I suppose I can promise never to knowingly falsify anything myself, for my own products or anyone else's. But that doesn't help much. | ||||||
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December 17th, 2008
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| Another infodump posts of interesting things I've seen online lately...I'm having problems with too many open tabs all the time slowing down my browser. Health Care Delay in Cancer Treatment Is Found to Raise Recurrence - those who can't afford the care and delay it, or those who are undereducated and don't understand the importance of the care and delay/don't complete treatment as a result, are likely to end up sicker later. So again, it's vital that health care be funded, and also that everyone have access to solid education their whole lives. Both are the government's job, IMO. Economy Driving Women to Skimp on Health Care: Poll Nursing Grudges; Why do we protect the moral convictions of only some health workers? - Good question...why are the moral rights of those who don't want to perform abortions protected while the moral rights of those who are willing to perform them subjugated? And we all know the answer: because it's not about morality or babies or life, but about control of female reproduction. Environment Recycling goes from boom to bust as economy stalls - Although from what I learned as a recycling activist in Vegas in 2003ish, at that time out there, the Nevada collection companies/agencies frequently couldn't sell their raw goods to anyone because of oversupply. I think it had a large part to do with California being the place to ship stuff but having plenty of its own. I also recall trucks from NY coming up to Ontario to pick up residential recycling in the early days of Ontario's municipalities doing the collection, because at that time so few places offered recycling and there was high demand for the stuff. So clearly, this industry can be boom or bust all over the place depending on a variety of factors. And everyone should remember that while recycling is great and important, reduction of initial waste is always better. Recycling takes energy and creates its own waste (an eco activist I knew once went to a paper recycling plant just over the Mexican border (to avoid US environmental regulations) and said it stank for miles because of all the chemicals used). Go for the least packaging possible on everything, reuse when you can, and make your wishes known to the companies whose products you like. You'd be amazed how often they'll respond, frequently even to send you coupons just for talking to them at all. From Consumerist Walgreens Jerks You Around When You Try To Buy Plan B - Not that this is particularly new or surprising, nor limited to Walgreens. Just another citation of this nonsense. Oh, and the guy's post itself has some errors, but the main point remains. You Can Steal The Empire State Building In Only 90 Minutes - This is funny and scary and sad. Prod Unemployment Office To Action With Your Local State Rep - This kind of goes along with what I often say about squeaking to get greased. When faced with a company's stupidity, contact the company and post your opinions on public review boards. When faced with governmental stupidity, go to your elected representatives. Sometimes you will be ignored, but more often that you'd imagine, you'll get results. Those who sit back and tolerate bullshit are doomed to be buried in bullshit! Careful: Lean Cuisine May Contain Random Pieces Of Plastic - These stories of contaminated food are becoming too common. It's too easy for them to brush individual customers off. There ought to be a government body to complain to and if enough complaints are received, the company should be fined and then after that, lose the right to sell food in the country. Only with that kind of threat will they stop this crap. Very few are in business to provide healthy food to happy people; most are in it for the dollars, pure and simple, and really don't care about the occasional loose screw other than how it affects the bottom line. Shoppers Cracked Jokes As Trampled Walmart Worker Died - Meep. Free Shipping Day Is December 18th - most of the retailers discussed ship free over a certain amount anyway, but it looks like there might be other good shipping deals to be had. Circuit City Liquidator Doubles List Price Before Taking 50% Off? - This shouldn't be a surprise to anyone. It's the same thing with most holiday sales...retailers are always jacking up prices just to be able to claim savings with a "sale". Don't be fooled. Do your research. Make sure a deal is really a deal first. Misc Amazing Doctor Who Popup Book - and the crafter describes fully how it was done. Bravo! Funny photo - I could make a list like that. Montgomery Erasing Gifted Label - Okay, it does sound like possibly their definition of gifted is too broad and therefore problematic. Fair enough. But once again, if it's offensive for one kid to get education more suited to them because they're smart, does that mean I, as a non-jock, can demand the abolition of sports teams because that's using resources for something that doesn't benefit me? Do I get to be offended at the celebration of athletic prowess I will never have? Ridiculous. Can we handle the truth? - "American people have become extraordinarily thin-skinned, and it has become taboo for anyone seeking office to utter a discouraging word about their character and behavior." Indeed. It's downright ridiculous. Americans can only get the change they desire if they are willing to admit that there's something wrong and in need of change. In the eight years I've lived here (almost nine, actually), I've seen dramatic improvement on that. When I first got here, most Americans I encountered were too proud to admit that their health care system sucked. Now that it sucks SO HARD, more are demanding change, so change of some kind or other is actually on the schedule. That needs to apply to all problems: war, education, civil rights, etc. People need to put their nationalistic pride into what they want their country to be, not mired in what it may or may not have been in the past. That being said, you just know that if Obama is truthful as called for in this article, anyone who didn't vote for him will loathe him all the more for it. Swedish researchers create body-swap illusion - Nifty science. Free Christmas Music Advent Calendar on Amazon - and hopefully I'll have time soon to actually download some of them. But you have to install something first and I haven't had time to deal with that. Shoe-thrower's brother: He wanted to humiliate 'tyrant' - An Iraqi reporter threw his shoes at Bush's head. Like, for real. Maybe this is old to everyone else but I don't get a lot of TV news time. There's a link to video during the story. Normally I don't advocate violence, but in terms of a violent act against a brutal oppressor, this one is pretty low on the violence, high on the symbolism, and high on the bravery. Good for him. | ||||||
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September 17th, 2008
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| Well well well... I just got a call from the woman at Cox Communications whom we'd left messages for in the past, who, according to what another rep said was in the account notes, claimed to have called our old number and left a message there despite a) that number having been disconnected and unable to accept messages and b) her having the new number because I'd left it on the message for her, and who eventually emailled me the disconnect document we had to fax back. This is also presumably the person who updated our address in the system but still failed to disconnect the service and who, presumably, was sticking to charging us for the months in between. She just called to give me an oh-so-sweet-voiced apology for all of our troubles on this. She'd like us to know that she's fixed all of those charges for the service after the point where it should have been disconnected. Oh, and because we paid our last bill but the disconnect came during that period, we're actually owed $21 and change and she's going to make sure a check gets sent out to us for that. I'm quite sure this is all suddenly happening because I got contacted by someone higher up at Cox after complaining right here in this journal. I can't prove it, but I haven't lodged any other complaint other than to the various customer service reps we've talked to through this, all of whom have been rude, belligerent, unhelpful, and in one case dumped me to COLLECTIONS. So I doubt any of them passed my name onto the higher-up. Now after responding to the higher-up person, everything has been taken care of. Well, that's dandy. I mean, I am genuinely happy that it's cleared up, but of course, it shouldn't have gotten so far in the first place. Our initial call to disconnect should have been enough, and even if it wasn't, even if there was some internal issue where the business side needed to be informed, the FIRST time we called them, they should have contacted the residential side, seen the note about a disconnect request, honoured it, and removed the subsequent charges. There is no excuse for sending us bill after bill and telling us off as if we're running some kind of scam on them. They'd probably like if I now say, "Hey, gee, Cox is great, they fixed everything, yay!" But that'd be a lie. They're not great. The only great thing about this is illustrating the power of standing up for yourself publicly to shame companies who do wrong. Up to this point, the best offer we had from Cox was when I got told that if I sent in the disconnect form immediately, they'd consider only making us pay for one extra month instead of two (and then they kept billing us anyway). It took me screaming publicly to get attention...all of our attempts at civil conversation got us nowhere. And we're not alone in finding that screaming online is the new way to get attention. Check out this story from Marketplace yesterday, in which a guy with trouble with Comcast got fast customer service by complaining on Twitter. So, folks, if you find yourself getting unfairly treated by a company, large or small, post about it. Post it to your LJ, your other blogs, and on every message board you frequent (if it's on topic, obviously, don't be a jerk to other board readers). Make sure you spell the name of the company properly and fully, because what they're doing is scanning for their name, looking for negative publicity. Now, doing this might get your problem fixed, but of course it's not necessarily going to fix the problems with runaway corporations behaving like total dicks, treating customers like crap and ignoring legitimate complaints. Nothing will do that short of massive boycotting, which can also come about online. We will NEVER, EVER be Cox customers again. Even if we move to an area where that's the only choice in cable, we will find another way to watch TV and get internet. I don't fancy DSL or satellite but I'll make those choices over Cox. I would similarly continue to discourage anyone new from signing up with Cox. This was not the only problem we've had with them over the years. From our early months when the Internet would blink in and out all day and customer service said it was our fault for months until finally a guy showed up and found a completely sun-cracked cable outside of our apartment, to when shortly after I presented them with my log of outages and they said they'd credit us with a month's fee for our problems and then when that didn't happen and I called to complain a customer service rep actually said I was a liar (I escalated that to an administrator who apologized and gave us the credit), to their unannounced split of our accounts last fall and adding on a new $10 charge, to this attempt to grab money for services that should have been disconnected, our 8-year-long experience with Cox Communications customer service has been at best unpleasant, and at worst hellish. Oh, and we lost count over the years how many times Corran specifically asked for my name to be added to the account so I could take care of problems, only to find that the next time a problem came up, they couldn't talk to me because my name wasn't on the account. There have GOT to be better choices out there. I strongly urge everyone to avoid Cox like the plague. Yes, our last issue with them is resolved, but it shouldn't have taken all of this nonsense to get it done. | ||||||
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June 21st, 2008
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The Electric Car Lives
But this is the bit that I want to highlight in particular:
Is this true? Because I've wanted an electric car for ages, and probably would have bought one by now if they had been available in my area at a price I could afford, and neither has even been close. I'd have to make sure it's safe, fits our needs (ie can put a kid in the back seat safely, doesn't make me motion-sick with a digital display, etc.), but in general, I want one. Out of curiosity, how many of you would buy a totally electric car like the one described in the article, assuming you could afford it and it was on sale where you live? Poll #1208726 Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All Would you buy a fully electric car as described in the article if you could afford it and it was available in your area?
View Answers 100% Yes, absolutely, and only the lack of availability/affordability has kept me from buying one already. 75% Probably, but I'd have to check it out in more detail first just to be sure. 50% Perhaps, but I'd need a lot of reassurance to be comfortable. 25% Hmmm...interesting concept, but probably not for me. I wouldn't totally rule it out, but chances are I wouldn't buy one. 0% Absolutely not. I have zero interest in an electric car. If you probably or definitely wouldn't consider an electric car, why not?
View Answers Looks/styling aren't appealing to me. It's not "sexy" to drive an electric car because it's like a golf cart. Doesn't fit my hauling/passenger requirements. I don't want this or any other car, because I don't drive and have no intention of ever driving. I worry that I'd run out of power on the road. I worry that I'd forget to plug it in at night, or I don't want to have to plug it in. I don't believe there's sufficient gain in an electric car as long as my electricity is produced by burning coal or through other polluting means. I lack confidence in the ability of the car to operate properly relative to a regular car. The whole concept is new and scary to me, so I don't want to get involved in it at all. I worry it would cost more to maintain/repair than a regular car. I worry that it's less safe than a regular car. Other (please state in comments). For the record, if you do want one and are getting frustrated by the constant media coverage that says nobody wants one, make a point of telling car dealers that this is what you want. When we were shopping for Corran's car and choosing between a Prius and a Fit, we made it absolutely clear that fuel efficiency was our top concern. When the Prius dealer told us in an uber-reassuring voice that we wouldn't need to plug it in at night (presumably this is a concern they get a lot, because we didn't ask about that, he just said it), I responded that I'd be happy to do that for a higher-efficiency vehicle. Only when enough of us make it clear to the auto makers and sellers directly that we want change will they bother to change. These people aren't environmentalists or even oil company lackeys...they are interested in one thing only: PROFIT. Indicate that you will buy something, and if they get enough numbers, they'll make what we want. Another thing to do is seek out surveys regarding car buying/driving and make sure your voice is heard. I've been doing polls for several big, reliable companies for years now and I get excited whenever they ask me about cars because I've long had the opportunity to scream out for higher fuel economy long before the recent price hike made it fashionable. Believe it or not, companies will often come around to do what we want if we make it clear enough that it's in their economic interest to do so. But it takes many voices, so if this is something you want, even if you can't buy it today, speak up and be heard. | ||||||
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7 (31.8%)April 29th, 2007
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| 1) Does President's Choice no longer have the triple chocolate fudge cookies? I was trying to look them up to recommend to someone and I couldn't find them, not even on the PC site. They were my favourite before I had to leave Canada! 2) Corran's parents leave on Monday and more than half of our to-do list is still undone. This is placing a lot of stress on us. 3) We almost bought a Prius today. ( reeeeealllly long story about craptastic sales idiots ) 4) I also have wasted time on baking issues. There's this cake in one of my cake books I've wanted to make for a long time, so I figured I'd make it now in advance of Corran's birthday and then his parents could help us eat it. I keep meaning to bake on Thursday nights so our D&D friends can help us eat on Friday, but really, only weekends are good for baking, so it never happens. Anyway, last night I figured I'd make the ganache from the book and then do the cake part tonight. I followed the recipe EXACTLY and I know how to melt chocolate properly and all of that, but the recipe sucked! It was unsweetened chocolate plus light cream, and that's all. It tasted like crap, plus the chocolate took on a grainy, almost curdled appearance amidst a sea of oil, regardless of how much I mixed. We're wondering if, because it's a British printing, "unsweetened" should have been "semisweet" or "bittersweet"? Even so, the improper mix result was bad. So tonight I did Alton Brown's ganache instead (which turned out just fine), and then did the cake as per the book. But it took so long to do that by the time it was done we barely had time to take Peo swimming as intended (see below) and then get her into bed, so the cake has been sealed away to be eaten tomorrow. I think it'll be at least okay-tasting, but I'm worried it won't be half as yummy as the recipe promised. So it feels like I've spent too much time on something that will be okay but not great. 5) I hadn't taken Peo to the pool since last summer, so I figured with Grandpa around to enjoy swimming as well, we could go out and re-introduce her. Well, last year she tolerated the cool water just fine, but not this time! She was barely in it and started SHAKING all over, wayyyy more than she ought to have for the temperature. I know she likes her baths hot but this pool honestly wasn't all that cold. She'd been asking for a bath when I was getting her ready, and I told her we were going swimming in a pool which was kind of like a bath outside, so I think maybe what happened was she saw the big body of water, got excited (she did seem happy to be carried in at first), but expected it to be hot so when it was cold maybe it felt shockingly cold? I encouraged her to splash and she did, which was good, but she was clearly unhappy and still shaking so I sat her on the edge. Then we tried sitting her on the top step so her bum and legs were in. Corran's dad tried to get her to kick at the water but she just kept asking for "up" so we took her out. I wrapped her in one of her new oh-so-awesome Sesame Street towels (free offer from Earth's Best, yay me for peeling jar labels!!) and warmed her up, but then she insisted on taking that off so she could run around the deck like a crazy person (including some face-planting, owie). After Grandpa came out of the pool I got back in and tried to get her to come in with me, but she just stood on the edge shouting for me, so I got out. Then when I started getting dressed to leave, she pointed to the pool and said, "SWIM SWIM!" I asked her if she wanted to go back in and she went silent, so I kept getting dressed. Then she shouted, "PLAY!" and ran around again. When I called her back to the stroller, she turned around and almost ran right into the pool. *rolls eyes* Thankfully Grandpa stopped her at the edge! So we'll try again when the sun's out (this was after dark, although still 28C outside), tomorrow if there's time, or Monday before Corran's parents have to go the airport since his dad wants a swim before boarding the long flight home to Sydney. 6) Speaking of Sesame Street towels, I must inform The Wiggles that while Peo still loves you lots and lots, you are no longer her boyfriends. As Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert fell before you, so now have you fallen before her new love: Ernie. Ahhh, Ernie...with your orange football-shaped head, silly laugh, and delightful songs...Peo loves to kiss your image on the towels and today I gave her a little Fisher Price version of you, which was immediately identified correctly despite a badly worn face (I got it for a buck, good clear faces go for at least $8 plus shipping). She even likes to make FP Ernie kiss towel Ernie! It really is a good fit: they both love letters and numbers, they both love rubber duckies, they both love taking baths, they both love to drink other people's beverages and keep people up all night (anyone with the Old School DVDs will understand, poor Bert!), and they're both very, very cute. :) | ||||||
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Blatherings
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