smokerblog

Dogs Are Brilliant

...as every dog owner knows, and the USA Today reports, this is especially true when taking dogs' social skills into account. USA Today is a little slow though, the report was published two-and-a-half years ago.

Apple-icious

We had some friends over earlier tonight. Here are the stats:

• people in attendance: 11
• types of different cheeses: 6
  (4 types sliced, 1 fondue pot, 1 baked into a pie)
• baguettes: 3
• approximate # of Dylan's raisins that Sam ate: 8
• apple desserts: 4
  (1 pie, 2 crisps, and 1 pan dowdy)
• approximate # of names Kari had for "pan dowdy:" 6
  (including "pow doddy" and "poo dowdy")
• disappointed Bills fans: 2
• time left in the game when Seth began actively rooting for his fantasy player's performance (Oakland RB LaMont Jordan) rather than a Bills win: 4:55

We missed you, VIvi!

Life on a Stack of 3x5 Index Cards

I was intrigued by the article in last Sunday's New York Times Magazine about "Life Hacks." Apparently, scientists are beginning to study and quantify all of those things about our hectic work environment that we already know intuitively.

Like, obviously, it's hard to complete a major task in the midst of constant interruptions, but it turns out that a bit of undistracted time at the beginning of the task means that it will be easier to get back on track when interruptions occur toward the end of a task. Also, you should mention to your boss that a second monitor could increase your productivity by 10-44 percent.

Now the whole "life-hacking" thing has all the earmarks of a short-lived meme, but I wandered over to 43folders.com to check out their Hipster PDA. I'm gonna give it a try.

At Least It Wasn't Seymour Butz

While listening to WXXI last night, halfway through their fall membership drive, I heard one donor's idea of anonymity:

"...thanks to Ben and Eileen Dover of Pittsford for their generous pledge..."

Yet Another Internet Quiz

According to the The 3-Variable Funny Test, this is me:

the Wit

(61% dark, 26% spontaneous, 15% vulgar)

Humor style: CLEAN | COMPLEX | DARK

You like things edgy, subtle, and smart. I guess that means you're probably an intellectual, but don't take that to mean pretentious. You realize 'dumb' can be witty--after all isn't that the Simpsons' philosophy?--but rudeness for its own sake, 'gross-out' humor and most other things found in a fraternity leave you totally flat.

...

If that's true, why did the picture of the drunk guy make me laugh out loud? More miscellaneous blather deleted here, but the quiz is worth taking just to see this chart:

(via a kindred wit)

Can't Look Away...

Kari woke up this morning (shocked, shocked!) to find me sitting on the living room couch watching Casablanca for like the gazillionth time. There are just some movies that, when I stumble across them while flipping through the channels, I have to stop and watch. Here's the short list of others:

1. The Godfather I & II
2. Patton
3. Tora! Tora! Tora!
4. Rio Bravo (also Rio Lobo, they're basically the same movie)¹
5. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
6. The Day of the Jackal
7. Dr. Strangelove

There are more than these, this list just represents the movies that annoy Kari the most. In fact, she can instantly identify the first three items on the list even when she's not in the room. This despite having never watched more than ten minute's worth at any one time.

I can't say that these are my favorite films, I just feel compelled to watch, even though they cost me major points every time...

A Track of Glass

I'm sitting here staring into space while in the middle of building a website for my neighbor, listening to my iTunes library on random shuffle, having been halted in my tracks by this, specifically the String Quartet No.5, 2nd Movement. Don't know why. Had to stop what I was doing and just listen.