tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38301762011-08-06T16:56:05.460-04:00Yet another blog.Shawnnoreply@blogger.comBlogger1511100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-82373134689213725102009-06-29T21:49:00.001-04:002009-06-29T21:49:11.194-04:00

Kruger, originally uploaded by bianca_mccartt.

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-88445071001304139212009-06-29T21:48:00.001-04:002009-06-29T21:48:18.517-04:00

photos, originally uploaded by bianca_mccartt.What an amazing tree!

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-74192569134781742622009-06-29T21:47:00.001-04:002009-06-29T21:47:41.839-04:00

Cape Town - Sunset Beach, originally uploaded by bianca_mccartt.Gorgeous, just like I've always been told.

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-89329085109056739172009-05-17T08:00:00.005-04:002009-05-25T08:36:35.051-04:00

This vacation was more like 3 vacations, so I'm going to break it down a bit by location.Cape Town, is a beautiful seaside city with a Mediterranean type of climate and a lot of picturesque sites. We arrived there Sunday afternoon and left on an early flight Thursday morning.When we arrived Rhiannon & Paul took me down to the promenade at Sunset beach where you can see Robben Island (where

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-66930963945052660652009-05-16T10:21:00.013-04:002009-10-03T10:49:56.425-04:00

There is so much to write about the South Africa trip that this is a daunting task. I kept a journal for myself on the journey and there are tons of photos to illuminate the memories but it will take me some thought to write it all out. If you are impatient, check out the facebook photos and notes for some snippets.My policy is it is always best to just jump right in, so here goes...This was

Biancanoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-49075481456705333462009-04-01T07:56:00.001-04:002009-04-01T08:42:18.056-04:00

I need some feedback on what sort of style to get my hair cut in on Friday in preparation for my trip to South Africa at the end of April. I'm not planning to go blonde, but I am considering shortening it. Let me know how you think the ones pictured below would look on me.

Biancanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-59551357792174583552009-03-29T12:48:00.001-04:002009-03-29T12:50:01.463-04:00

Sorry about the blog hiatus... Shawn blames facebook. I figured I would at least post my latest painting.From mizzen mast

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-3894188982161868892009-02-02T13:28:00.004-05:002009-02-08T09:57:09.069-05:00

I was asked to do one of the horses at the barn and here is the result. I did this one larger on a real canvas this time and I'm so happy with how it turned out. I'm taking commissions now to help fund our trip to South Africa in May, for my first visit to my mom's family. If you have an image you'd like as an oil painting or a pencil sketch, then let me know. I'm not going to set any

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-79719629961759965992009-01-01T08:38:00.002-05:002009-01-01T08:41:00.732-05:00

Happy New Year Everyone!I've been resolving to get back to drawing and painting for over a year now and I finally dived in yesterday. I had done a couple of sketches of this mare & foal photo over the last few weeks and I attempted a painting of it yesterday. This is my first try with oils and I'm pretty pleased with the result!

Biancanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-86013038706901663272008-12-20T23:45:00.004-05:002008-12-20T23:50:06.214-05:00

We took the horses out "caroling" today in the neighborhood behind the farm. The horses were all dressed up in Christmas finery and we attempted a few well known carols. The photos are the best part of course:

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-33116158690995454192008-12-06T08:48:00.002-05:002008-12-06T09:00:10.064-05:00

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Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-67205125674932279292008-10-25T09:18:00.000-04:002008-10-25T09:19:24.108-04:00

See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-35092438664762137702008-10-15T07:21:00.002-04:002008-10-15T07:29:40.029-04:00

Once again, Michael Pollan is featured in the New York Times. Here's his open letter to our next president about the next big issue on the horizon - agriculture reform:http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/12/magazine/12policy-t.html?hp=&pagewanted=allSince reading Pollan's books I have been waiting for this issue to be discussed by our candidates and a little disappointed that it hadn't come up yet,

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-7240109229337773572008-10-11T17:00:00.002-04:002008-10-11T17:11:37.211-04:00

Listen to the October 3rd episode of This American Life for an explanation that will not be confusing or sleep-inducing (available as a podcast on iTunes or at www.thislife.org). We have listened to and loved TAL for almost a decade for its quirky, funny, heart-warming and interesting stories. In the last couple of years, they have focused a few episodes on national issues like Iraq and the

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-32476923619041061702008-10-04T08:12:00.004-04:002008-10-04T08:21:24.693-04:00

I've been working on getting reading for the Columbus half marathon, which has involved a number of runs this past week. I had planned for a 6 mile run this weekend. Then, last night, for the first time ever, I believe I pulled a groin muscle.What type of extreme activity was I participating in? Was it some wicked cut playing Ultimate? Was I running, and step too fast/far off a curb? Perhaps

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-47114857207797696242008-09-27T23:18:00.004-04:002008-09-27T23:25:16.078-04:00

I made the mistake of having the t.v. on Fox News while we were switched to the DVD. I came back to the satellite to hear Karl Rove repeatedly claim that the reason Palin didn't appear in any post-debate analysis is that the McCain camp WANTED more focus on Biden, because Biden is so gaffe-prone and such a liability, he needs a higher profile, and Palin would distract from that.Between watching

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-30145080481932650112008-09-23T21:07:00.002-04:002008-09-23T21:08:49.265-04:00

Times are tough, so to lighten things up a bit, an LOL cat...more animalsLucky was never quite this bad :-)

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-40036748455450493852008-09-22T08:53:00.002-04:002008-09-22T09:00:19.976-04:00

It so seems like we're entering a remake of the mid-70's. Massive financial crises and economic collapse, oil spiking, a dispirited military facing yet another defeat against an entrenched insurgency, and, now, a renewed Cold War, complete with Russian involvement in Latin America. Do you mind if I go into a coma for the next 20 years? Wake me when this shit is over. (And I didn't even

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-73577711955980372102008-09-12T00:04:00.003-04:002008-09-13T00:10:25.392-04:00

This is something I've watched several times since 9/11, it helps remind me of the extreme emotional reaction (I always find myself bawling) I had watching what was happening.(edit) I've heard there were some problems embedding this, so here the link

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-39798170285079152562008-09-09T22:11:00.004-04:002008-09-09T22:26:47.007-04:00

I mentioned going to my 10 year high school reunion two weeks ago. The same day, I arranged a mini-reunion with the group of women I went to graduate school with: Gina Johns, Kathy Warren, Chris Trinkle and Jennie Campbell. We went to Ramsey's to catch up and relive the old times, and it was a blast to see them all again. Gina & Jennie now work at Lexmark, Chris is a UK Mechanical

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-44860545050045325912008-09-08T15:37:00.003-04:002008-09-08T15:45:54.270-04:00

So the other thing, "no sex before marriage" worked in "the olden days" when people were married off at 14-15 years old (after all the Bar Mitzvah at 13 is "becoming a man" in Judaism). At that point, the married couple can do what they are evolutionarily, biologically driven to do, bone like bunnies and start popping out kids. Adolescence, where you're still a "kid" at home, is relatively new,

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-85129708994877735852008-09-08T13:30:00.006-04:002008-09-08T13:48:47.810-04:00

Reading a recap of the VMAs last night, where the Jonas Brothers' (don't know them, just know they're the current incarnation of the Hansons, probably grown in the same clone vats and adored by the same type of Tiger Beat girl) "promise rings" were referenced/mocked. Cause none of the pure Christian kids, who of course have been taught nothing but abstinence have any desire for sex before

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-39173322690602899452008-09-07T00:08:00.004-04:002008-09-07T00:22:14.094-04:00

I know neither Shawn nor I have made our support for Obama a secret during the many months of the presidential campaign, so it will surprise no one that we have nothing good to say about McCain and his running mate. The more I learn about McCain himself, the less I think that he is fit to be President. Sarah Palin is another matter entirely, and as the commentators like to point out, as the VP

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-31983130275036202392008-09-01T22:04:00.002-04:002008-09-01T22:06:47.874-04:00

I wish I was an economist so I could write a paper like this. Thanks to the Freakonomics blog for always being fascinating.

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-34028060814425003032008-08-30T07:42:00.002-04:002008-08-30T07:47:43.105-04:00

Once in a while I write articles for the SWE Magazine (Society of Women Engineers) and my latest one just came out. It's online (in a really cool format) here. I think I'm starting to get the hang of writing these and it's just cool to see myself in print!My 10 year high school reunion is tonight and I'm going with Andrea to see what has happened to all the people we've forgotten we ever spent

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-14868673865336854222008-08-27T23:28:00.002-04:002008-08-27T23:34:38.074-04:00

A friend of mine brought her very nice camera out to the barn with me and took these pics about a month ago. I know everyone is probably tired of hearing me talk about horses but I truly can't get enough of them. Part of the reason for that is the wonderful horse that I have... Mo, short for Mohandis and son of my mom's stallion Shamal. He turned five this year and he's always a joy to work

Biancanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-80293255537295165532008-08-26T21:40:00.002-04:002008-08-26T21:44:37.784-04:00

Here's Shawn, and yeah, I'm still alive too. Nothing of any consequence has been going on in my life, so not much worth blogging about. Biggest news is that I'm watching the 5th season of The Wire, and playing an online game of Diplomacy, which I'd like to actually play on some Saturday face-to-face. As far as the food thing above, based on my reckoning, I've only had 28 of them, so clearly I

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-74464643902904528332008-08-23T14:30:00.002-04:002008-08-23T15:12:47.568-04:00

I keep trying to avoid the long blogging hiatus but the combination of being a little to busy and laziness has been getting the better of me. We have been having a fun summer though, going camping a few times and catching up with various friends. After not going camping for at least 10 years (i.e. as long as we've been together) we decided to try it out on the way back from Nashville and then

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-77375636293619086302008-07-24T01:50:00.003-04:002008-07-24T02:44:30.545-04:00

I (like many other "white people") love some obscure music. For the last couple of years my absolute, number one favorite band has been the Old 97's and I can't get enough of it. I have to admit, it took me a while to get into them at first. A friend gave me a smattering of songs from a couple of different albums and it probably took a year before they became part of my regular rotation. The

Biancanoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-85309386240879173992008-07-15T21:20:00.005-04:002008-07-16T23:33:27.212-04:00

Looking back on my college career at UK the one thing that I am truly proud of is kicking off the solar car team. While back in the day (circa 2000) we were working on a shoestring budget (approx. $40K in donations vs. competitive teams with >$100K or more) and we didn't quite make it to qualifying the car the first year, the team has survived and prospered. This year's team has built and is

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-58944679334709817682008-07-14T22:55:00.002-04:002008-07-14T23:02:57.748-04:00

A couple of recent articles about the frontiers of medicine in the animal kingdom and the lengths that people will go to for their pets.From the Boston Globe: How Far Should We Go to Save Our Pets?From the New York Times: Pill-Popping PetsAs our family of pets grows, this is an issue that looms large for us. I have always had an affinity for animals of all shapes and sizes. However, growing up,

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-84771220843962364342008-06-16T10:28:00.001-04:002008-06-16T10:32:05.835-04:00

Obama: The University of Chicago Democrat I don't think I have anything to add. A sample:Fortunately, the candidate's campaign proposals offer strong and encouraging clues about how he would govern; what makes them distinctive is that they borrow sensible ideas from all sides. Some people are describing Obama as a conventional liberal, or as "the most liberal person in the Congress," but these

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-56915199211824072252008-06-14T12:24:00.002-04:002008-06-14T12:33:49.140-04:00

Last Thursday, we got a new kitten! Keeping with the theme of naming our pets after Buffy (we currently have two rotties named Oz and Willow), we named the new kitten Clem. For those who don't know the (very minor) demon character Clem, there's this link, describing the character first seen... in a game of kitten poker! :)Here's some video of our new kitten playing around

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-80461836367180567432008-06-14T11:01:00.003-04:002008-06-14T11:31:12.571-04:00

I'm clearly regressing to my High School debate frame of mind, because I'm loving nothing more this week than arguing :) Unfortunately, the specific post I'm trying to argue with is on a friends invitation-only blog, so I'll have to start by doing my best to summarize her arguments. What I took from her (very well written) post was that Obama launching a rumor-dispelling site is both

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-38778313051683237582008-06-10T12:46:00.001-04:002008-06-10T12:48:22.020-04:00

In the vein of more frequent posting (going for quantity not quality dammit!) I just want to ask. How the hell do tomatoes get infected with salmonella?

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-54317366309055585432008-06-09T23:18:00.004-04:002008-06-10T12:00:27.456-04:00

I wish I had the consistency to be a frequent blogger. In the interest of "stop fucking lying" I wish I wasn't too lazy to regularly post here. The problem I have is that I feel that I need to put a lot of thought/effort into each post. I want to try to have more of a balance between the long posts, and the random observation posts. In that vein (and I know, I keep being political, but that's

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-85622793103089311752008-06-09T22:18:00.004-04:002008-06-09T22:29:55.044-04:00

A very interesting article article about societal transformation and it's impact on those who, in the words of the (purported, see this) Chinese curse "live in interesting times." His thesis is that what being complete drunks was to those dealing with the Industrial Revolution is similar to the massive amount of free time spent in front of the tube in the past 50 years.Favorite quote: Did you

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-26061241797860189302008-05-27T08:31:00.002-04:002008-05-27T08:37:33.122-04:00

Ever since reading In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan, I've been a lot more conscious of all of my food choices. This is something that Bianca has been moving towards a long time, and she's happy I've finally seen the light and am being supportive. For the past month and a half, we've been going to Findlay Market on Saturdays for the Farmer's Market, and have been doing a lot more eating of

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-87120475103436727392008-05-04T13:04:00.002-04:002008-05-04T13:10:09.940-04:00

Shawn found this video online, which I just had to share:Lorenzo : the Flying French Man...by alateboAlso, I ran my 3rd Half Marathon today in the Flying Pig and managed my fastest 13.1 miles yet! I was pulled along by my running buddies, who are much speedier than I am but I did my best to keep up and we all finished together. It's been a lot of fun training for this one, and I'm planning to

Biancanoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-26807962029162037432008-04-25T11:17:00.003-04:002008-04-25T11:40:17.326-04:00

Due to my usual procrastination, I put off starting our taxes until around the beginning of April. I figured that, since our situation was almost exactly the same as last year, it was no big deal. Last year we owed about $275 to the state, but got back $1500 from the feds, leading to a nice chunk of change back. I thought that the only downside of putting it off was the delay in getting my

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-73757269426404073032008-04-23T09:02:00.001-04:002008-04-23T09:03:38.451-04:00

Watching MSNBC this morning, Hillary Clinton was quoted as saying "and now the tide is turning!" Umm... if you've already been dragged 3 miles offshore and have started drowning, does the change in tide really matter?Stop the drama, vote Obama!

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-88697781128370714542008-04-03T21:38:00.003-04:002008-04-03T21:44:48.393-04:00

I keep thinking about blogging, and then failing to do it. Currently, I'm working off my work laptop, having broken a cable on my PC trying to move it to a new case (which I learned is impossible with a Dell motherboard), and am waiting for the replacement. I'm taking this week (the week of my birthday) off, so it's mostly just staying up late, watching TV/movies, sleeping-in, etc. and wasting

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-20919114477384780832008-04-01T14:15:00.003-04:002008-04-01T14:57:37.462-04:00

Shawn McCartt was born.Which makes him a birthday boy today.HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-66719868144552887792008-02-24T02:17:00.001-05:002008-02-24T02:19:46.135-05:00

The common knowledge of how society operated during most of human history is that most people had very limited mobility, stayed in the same village/area and knew the same people for most of their lives. Extended families were the most important aspect, and "everyone knew everyone." The common knowledge also says that in the past couple hundred years (and especially in the past 60-70 years) this

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-52601616853921213642008-02-08T22:48:00.000-05:002008-02-09T10:29:15.854-05:00

Something else I wanted to blog about was my new tech toy, AKA the best gift I've ever gotten. My lovely, wonderful, perceptive, awesome, incredible (I'm running out of adjectives but any positive ones you can think of, insert here) wife Bianca got together with my parents (so that she had the idea and they would pay for it, thus not hurting our bank account) to have them get me for Christmas

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-42041964232682601162008-02-08T22:34:00.000-05:002008-02-08T22:41:15.060-05:00

I'm basically fully on the Obama train at this point. I'm trying to find out how to get yard signs for him (now that I know OH is still in play) and plan to vote as a democrat in the primary so I can support him. I'm planning on a more detailed post in the future to argue for him, but I saw this video today (via Andrew Sullivan) that I found really compelling. One argument against Obama is

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-50496105564308712252008-02-08T00:01:00.000-05:002008-02-08T00:09:19.036-05:00

Bianca pointed out to me today how we hadn't updated this since Christmas. Since this is mostly "my" bog, it's on me, and if anyone is still checking in, I apologize for not providing some updates. I vow to do better in the future, and have a number of things I want to "talk" about. Ranging from how much I love my new job (still with Perot and CHW but with a vastly exapanded responsibilty) to

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-23876662273955265942007-12-24T23:14:00.000-05:002007-12-24T23:26:50.093-05:00

Since I have been procrastinating sending even a single Christmas card this year and am even behind on my e-mails, here is a blog post instead so everyone knows we are still here.This fall has been so hectic and it seems like things have been non-stop since Labor Day, with travel morphing into holidays and lots of work. I have high hopes for 2008, that it might be calmer and less stressful and

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-89896733159921077172007-11-23T08:52:00.000-05:002007-11-23T09:00:00.103-05:00

As a casual wine lover, I have been guilty of disdain for the screwcap, and even the plastic corks that are now becoming more and more common. I assumed that this was just a cost reduction strategy on the part of the bottlers. Turns out, I had it all wrong. As a segment on CBS Sunday Morning (aka NPR with pictures) explained, the screwcap is actually an attempt to improve the quality of the

Biancanoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-76253831355781298182007-11-18T09:47:00.000-05:002007-11-18T10:27:37.365-05:00

All last week, Marketplace (my favorite finance radio show on NPR) aired a series called "Consumed" designed to examine the consumerism lifestyle and it's consequences. I did a little holiday and personal shopping yesterday and tried not to overdo it although I certainly wanted to buy a lot more. I don't go shopping that often, so when I do, I am really overwhelmed by all the stuff that it

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-47351970965014396642007-11-13T13:02:00.000-05:002007-11-13T13:05:07.421-05:00

Shawn is out of surgery and back home to recover now. The surgeon said that everything went very smoothly. He had one large gallstone that was causing all the trouble.Thanks to everyone for your well-wishes. We really appreciate all the good vibes we've been getting.

Biancanoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-51467709814265695222007-11-07T22:50:00.000-05:002007-11-07T22:52:38.565-05:00

Scheduled for the surgery next Tuesday (11/13). I was really surprised (but happy) that they got me in that soon.

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-50423202841435209032007-10-29T13:34:00.000-04:002007-10-29T14:00:39.545-04:00

This past week (from Tuesday through Saturday night), Bianca was gone to Nashville for a SWE conference. I had been having some spells of nausea, mostly in the mornings for a couple weeks. Tuesday night, following a dinner of the spinach pizza (mmm, creamy spinach dip topped with lots of cheese) & some beer, felt quite sick. It passed, and Wednesday started out fine. Then Wednesday after the

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-3425319636387109442007-10-07T14:20:00.000-04:002007-10-07T14:35:34.190-04:00

For this week, we're dogsitting for my parents two dogs, an extremely dim labish-mutt mix, and a boxer/pit bull mix. In the less than 24 hours we've had them, there's already been some drama, along with quite a bit of comedy. The drama being the lab-mutt eating several tubes of oil paints that were sitting on a desk, spreading oil paints across both the hardwood floor of our spare room and the

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-2115731193221978152007-09-29T13:22:00.000-04:002007-09-29T13:24:06.749-04:00

I ran the race for the cure this morning, and had it clearly illustrated to me how quickly running conditioning is lost when you stop for any length of time. My running has been sporatic at best since the Flying Pig last May, and it's shows. I've only had a couple of runs that felt smooth or comfortable, and several that were miserable, leaving me with aching lungs, and a general feeling of

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-35921501214909192882007-09-28T08:53:00.000-04:002007-09-28T09:06:12.467-04:00

P&G launches smart toothbrushOral-B, the toothbrush brand from the Procter & Gamble Co., announced on Friday it is launching Oral-B Triumph with SmartGuide, a wireless display that allows users to time their brushing.The announcement came at the American Dental Association annual meeting in San Francisco.The company says SmartGuide combines the brushhead, handle and visual display so users

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-55388086469509014722007-09-24T10:50:00.001-04:002007-09-24T10:50:46.583-04:00

"Get in a good mood! How hard is it to decide to be in a good mood and be in a good mood?!"-Lloyd Dobbler

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-49602842134451705132007-09-20T10:32:00.000-04:002007-09-20T10:37:42.399-04:00

And I promise that I'll make some changesBut reaching back it occurs to meThere will always besome kind of crisisOh, I want to die aloneWith my sympathy beside meI want to bring back all those moments they stole from meIn my reverieDarkening days endOh, I want to die aloneWith my memories inside meI want to live that lifeWhen I could say people had faith in meI still see that guy in my memory

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-26574829472916088892007-09-14T07:31:00.001-04:002007-09-14T07:34:20.667-04:00

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-28444477236842059352007-09-05T12:00:00.000-04:002007-09-05T12:08:56.072-04:00

Right before this picture was taken, we got to see Mickey get quite pissy. The mouse-wrangler was apparently trying to direct the line to form in a direction it wasn't supposed to go, and Mickey began to wave at him to get his attention. When this failed, he began violently stopping his booted foot, creating quite loud clapping noises, and gesturing violently towards where the line should be.

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-38144795298046775902007-09-03T13:28:00.000-04:002007-09-03T13:40:41.580-04:00

Bianca and I have just successfully completed the second annual Disneyland Half Marathon!! It was hot as a demon's balls, and about as sticky (I think it was already 90 by the time Bianca finished.) Largely because of that, our paces weren't as good as we hoped, but we've both completed it. My time of 2:19 was a minute faster than I ran it last year, so technically it's a PR, but since I ran

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-92114214030876667122007-09-01T09:34:00.000-04:002007-09-03T13:42:48.886-04:00

A chupacabra has been found! Though, we knew of the location of one of these mythical beasts for years now...

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-85927417818905564502007-08-11T07:24:00.000-04:002007-08-11T08:37:44.495-04:00

Yesterday was our 6th wedding anniversary and we celebrated by going to see Stardust, the movie adaptation of a Neil Gaiman book by the same name. When we first started dating, way way back in 1998, my tastes were old-fashioned as far as music, literature, and movies. I would've said my favorite band was Led Zeppelin, my favorite reads came from my high school English classes, and my favorite

Biancanoreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-52091143431697093602007-07-14T21:02:00.000-04:002007-08-07T18:13:20.315-04:00

And after great anticipation, the final chapter...From Gothenburg we took the ferry (Stena Line) to Denmark, and then the train to Skagen. We saw a lot of Danish countryside by train. It is strikingly different from the rocky Swedish country-side.First stop, Skagen, a truly adorable fishing village, at the northenmost tip of Denmark. Karin thought that it would be a shame if we missed seeing

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-39355586614983068042007-07-09T20:33:00.000-04:002007-07-10T22:30:11.921-04:00

I have figured out a new fun way to embed pictures as slideshows, so I can post more here. Now I don't have to spend so much time deciding which ones are the nicest! However, all the pictures are best viewed full size on Picasa, which you can do by clicking on them.On Wednesday, we set sail in Sweden's archipelago. It was the first time either Shawn or I had been on a sailboat, and we weren't

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-55332793635860323362007-07-08T21:37:00.000-04:002007-07-08T22:28:57.599-04:00

Okay, we are going to split the rest of the trip into smaller posts, so continuing in chronological order from where we left off...The next place on our list to visit was Liseberg, the most popular theme park in Sweden. We went in the evening, in the rain, so it wasn't too crowded but there were still plenty of people there. It is a little bit like a permanent carnival with restaurants and

Biancanoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-48915798247926283662007-07-04T19:09:00.000-04:002007-07-04T19:10:16.744-04:00

We have returned from a fantastic time in Sweden & Denmark. More details (and pictures) to come :-)

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-71453645180067953862007-06-25T11:26:00.000-04:002007-06-25T12:13:12.577-04:00

Our first transatlantic flight went smoothly... 8 hours aboard a Boeing 757-200, with a window and middle seat. (Shawn was a wonderfully kind and generous husband, and gave me the window seat. (<--Shawn wrote that -B) (Did not. -S) (Did too. -B) (OK, I did. And this whole exchange. -S)) There were some lovely views of the horizon and Denmark, on the way in. We arrived about 8:00 a.m., and made

Biancanoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-56175539788353182682007-06-23T09:17:00.000-04:002007-06-23T09:19:08.635-04:00

We decided not to take a laptop with us to Sweden, so I'm not sure how much (if any) we'll be able to check email/blog while there. If not, look forward to some lengthy updates on July 5th or thereabouts. Wish us luck!

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-45980707974829163932007-06-23T06:37:00.000-04:002007-06-23T07:50:51.310-04:00

This morning, I sat down in front of the t.v. with my breakfast and when I turned it on, it was tuned to IMF, the "International Music Feed" channel and there was this video on. For a minute I though to myself "maybe she is Swedish" but then realized that all the Swedish music videos I have seen are always in English. Turns out it was Swedish! What serendipity!As Shawn mentioned briefly we are

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-69728008650554178822007-06-21T17:23:00.001-04:002007-06-21T17:25:58.551-04:00

The below is what I wrote around 10:30. There was more, but I had to stop and deal with some more work stuff (trying to figure out how to work with the underlying flash code for www.chwgolfclassic.org. Now keep in mind, I knew NOTHING about flash, and was just the guy in charge of integrating the movie into the website. I downloaded the trial version of the Adobe tool, spent the next two hours

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-45565260173029754932007-06-20T22:35:00.000-04:002007-06-21T17:23:16.398-04:00

We leave the house for Sweden in approximately 2.5 days, and I feel like I've got 10 days worth of stuff I need to get done. I'm not going to stress too much about the work, as it's not my fault they overloaded me a week before a vacation I had planned for months. Sure, I'm working long hours (since 7 this morning, still working now, with perhaps 3-4 hours of taking breaks), but I'm not going

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-88581956346372101852007-06-17T11:52:00.000-04:002007-06-17T12:35:08.269-04:00

Here are the states I can lay claim to... at least the ones I remember. A lot of the places I have been, particularly out west, were as part of either the solar car race which followed Route 66 or for a SWE conference. There's a lot of desert out there once you get past Missouri.Looks like I need to visit some of those northern states.

Biancanoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-63411991524102130812007-06-16T15:05:00.000-04:002007-06-16T16:12:40.191-04:00

Saw this on My brother's blog and figured I'd copy it :) It's possible I've been to North Carolina on the way to Myrtle Beach when I was really little, but I don't know for sure, so I'm leaving it out.(Update) Added N.C.

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-61039289408028273312007-06-16T14:39:00.000-04:002007-06-16T14:51:49.479-04:00

The title comes from a This American Life episode "My Reputation" (the last segment, starting at 47' 43" in), where a guy asks all his friends their true opinion of him. He learns from them all (including his MOM) that they think he's kinda an asshole. He asks one friend why he's still friends with him, and the response was "I dunno... inertia?"I bring that up not because I think all my friends

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-68316502661321131602007-05-07T13:18:00.000-04:002007-05-07T13:20:33.724-04:00

We both successfully completed the marathon! I can barely walk up and down stairs now, but it was well worth it. Not only did I finish, I beat my goal time of a 10 minute mile pace... by all of 3 seconds, but still :) putting my finish time at (tee-hee) 4:20 (and 46 seconds). Bianca was run/walking, and finished in 6:11:06.I'd say I can't wait to do it again, but even though I totally plan to

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-12029779774887233182007-04-23T10:07:00.000-04:002007-04-23T10:18:48.778-04:00

Results from the 10K race I ran in on Saturday have been posted. They gave medals to the top 15% of finishers in each age group, which meant the top 2 in the 30-34 group I was in. Turns out I was 3rd... SOOOO close! I'm incredibly happy that I did that well, and that my pace ended up being less than a 9 minute mile, which I hadn't expected at all! The main page for the race results is here.

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-83064874283590601792007-04-22T14:36:00.000-04:002007-04-22T14:40:56.382-04:00

+ + =(and sadly I can't even claim as an excuse, as I was stone-sober)

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-27026226133115277442007-04-21T14:43:00.000-04:002007-04-21T14:49:16.150-04:00

We embarked on an ambitious cleaning of the basement today, going through all kinds of stuff that has piled up down there, a lot of which is just crap put there during the move and has been undisturbed since. Going through a couple of boxes, Bianca is pulling out old high school debate plaques, random papers, toys, etc. She turns to me and says "Hey! I think I just found your childhood!"

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-18420275382561327202007-04-20T10:20:00.000-04:002007-04-20T10:22:48.010-04:00

My morning:User: Trying to do X on the system that's a mix of your stuff and this 3rd parties stuff, we are getting a problem, problem Y.Me (after investigation): The root cause of Y is that the 3rd party needs to implement Z. Here's extensive documentation on exactly why I came to that conclusion, along with tutorials on X,Y,and Z.Third Party: Hey, I wasted time and found documentation on

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-54072096161697010262007-04-20T06:59:00.000-04:002007-04-20T07:03:00.492-04:00

Had an unbelievable start to my day this morning. I had stayed in Lexington last night at my parents, and, on the drive from their place (off Clays Mill near Man o' War) to my parking lot downtown, not a single red light. This might be a first ever for a Lexington drive of that distance...

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-12398030679627962482007-03-28T15:31:00.001-04:002007-03-28T15:31:47.069-04:00

Now I know how Bianca spends her days at work...

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-22035903683669155352007-03-19T20:49:00.000-04:002007-03-19T21:13:22.922-04:00

Been absent from blogging for a while, and I've no doubt it's the fact that we've (ok, it was pretty much all ME) have TV again. Not just TV, but HDTV, complete with an HD-DVR. uummmmm....sweeeet. Even though I have the 30-second skip, I'm still seeing the occasional commercial, including the one that's led me to make this post:On one hand, I applaud the fact the governmentally-paid-for ads

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-89816140567461437682007-03-05T08:44:00.000-05:002007-03-05T09:10:42.338-05:00

And I'm just gettin' warm.Had a blast Saturday night playing Trivial Pursuit - Pop Culture Edition over at some friends. Bianca made the call that the only way to make the game fair would be for the three of them to team up against me. And had it not been for Jesse showing up midway through the game, I still might have won :) As it was, I did get all 6 pies while they were still struggling

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-70521307535274739362007-03-01T09:00:00.000-05:002007-03-01T09:07:32.524-05:00

On windy, stormy days like this, you can hear the big blue building creaking and swaying as the wind beats against it. Even see the blinds move, and (my favorite) the water in the toilet bowls shift as the building moves ever so slightly. I don't find it scary at all, in fact I love it. It's a reminder of how powerful nature is, combined with great respect for man's accomplishments, thinking

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-80019854655345114792007-02-23T10:22:00.000-05:002007-02-23T10:26:36.983-05:00

I see the headline U.S. tourist in Costa Rica kills mugger and my first thought was curiosity about whether the tourist was packing, and wondering if he would be prosecuted for breaking gun laws in Costa Rica, and prepared to be outraged. Then I read the article, and learn:The American, who is about 70 years old and retired from the military, put the 20-year-old in a head lock and broke his

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-9202225750813585682007-02-23T09:09:00.000-05:002007-02-23T09:16:25.579-05:00

In our latest "experience the arts on the cheap by volunteering" we'll be ushering tonight at the Ladysmith Black Mambazo concert. As a small taste, here's Ladysmith Black Mambazo - In Outer Space:

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-32155380226607704852007-02-20T22:25:00.001-05:002007-02-20T22:25:53.855-05:00

I hate politicians.

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-40531812325306957232007-02-20T15:59:00.000-05:002007-02-20T16:03:17.548-05:00

Is that what they say? Going off tonight to usher for the State Of the City Address at the Aronoff Center. I'm haven't kept up nearly as much as I feel I should with local politics and issues, so hopefully this will help jumpstart my participation.

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-59031656242467512812007-02-19T10:38:00.000-05:002007-02-19T10:49:41.148-05:00

Even with the repeated cancellations of the group training runs due to the spate of horrible weather (Wind and Ice and Snow, Oh My!) we've had, the training for the Cincinnati Marathon just keeps on going. We're running as part of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Societies Team In Training, using our running as a way to raise funds and awareness for Leukemia & Lymphoma treatment and research. You can

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-44533971588498671672007-02-19T10:27:00.000-05:002007-02-19T10:51:13.364-05:00

To paraphrase (and use the words of John Stewart) "Please stop hurting America" http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/articles/070219fa_fact_mayerI'm a huge fan of 24, but recognize it as an absurdist fantasy of constantly escalating tension and cliffhangers. I wish they'd rely less on torture, but mostly because I'd like the show to be a bit more creative in the tension and drama.

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-34445109580703092102007-01-18T11:23:00.000-05:002007-01-18T11:30:14.512-05:00

I've clearly been doing the Cincinnati<->Lexington drive too much when I am eager to see what progress has been made in the construction near Williamstown in the past week. I'm sure I'll be as giddy as schoolgirl when it's complete and the interstate is 3 lanes for all but about 15 miles of the journey. Find joy in the little things I always say :)

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-22274343196675610042007-01-08T16:53:00.000-05:002007-01-08T17:37:36.496-05:00

So as Andrea pointed out in a comment, I've been quite remiss in my blogging recently. We had some rather hectic activities over Christmas that kept me away from the computer for quite a bit, and then I started feeling a bit overwhelmed with the thought of trying to blog about all that's gone on, leading to a paralysis of inaction. Such paralyses (paralysi? paralysises?) have plagued me

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-1166671511774200052006-12-20T22:23:00.000-05:002006-12-20T22:25:11.793-05:00

Two great bits I saw today:andAnd remember, when you can't think of anything to blog about, there's always YouTube! :)

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-1165869617851440622006-12-11T15:20:00.000-05:002006-12-11T20:25:53.993-05:00

Been a while since I blogged, had a ton of stuff going on last week that kept my computer-time focused on the "important" stuff like surfing, playing games, and work, uh, and like not in that order or anything :)Actually work was pretty slammed, with a big project attempting to wrap up and get into usability testing. My stuff wasn't a major part, but I definitely got caught up in the general air

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-1165038678701845342006-12-02T00:43:00.000-05:002006-12-08T12:25:26.440-05:00

I might have brought this up with some before, but I find the massive amount of "meta" behind both of the "based on SNL" shows that are currently on NBC awesome (though one awesomely bad, the other awesomely good). The bad, Studio 60. Had I not had TelevisionWithoutPity I wouldn't have know just how completely it mirrors Aaron Sorkin, and not just in his preachy politics, but also personal life

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-1164857657246801762006-11-29T21:48:00.000-05:002006-11-29T22:43:20.990-05:00

Post-Disneyland my running/exercise regimen has really tapered off and Thanksgiving was a real threat to my physical fitness with a whole week of eating and very little real exercise. This week, I decided it was time to join Team In Training to attempt the Cincinnati Flying Pig Marathon and get back into a goal-oriented schedule. I contacted TNT this morning and I was e-mailed the registration

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-1164610026400903352006-11-27T01:45:00.000-05:002006-11-27T01:59:54.546-05:00

I don't really have anything to comment on after the holiday off, so I figure I just share this nugget of joy.This is the "classic" skit from that episode. Though I'm a huge fan of this skit of a census questionnaire that was in the same show. It lives on as an inside joke between Bianca and I with random references to "I feel enormous amount of pressure to get this right, I want to win that

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-1164146945153371292006-11-21T17:02:00.000-05:002006-11-21T17:55:13.043-05:00

This year we decided that in order to avoid the franticness of previous Thanksgiving's where we ate two or three times in four hours and drove between 40 and a few 100 miles, we would take the entire week off, celebrate with one side of the family on an alternate day and the other on the actual day. We also decided that on the alternate day, we would take care of the cooking, and so for the

Biancanoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3830176.post-1163836197442107102006-11-18T02:47:00.000-05:002006-11-18T02:49:57.456-05:00

So for all the great souls who answered my "Quiz" I'm planning on posting the "right" answers sometime next week. If you're dying to know the correct answer to a question before then, email me, and I'll hit you back...

Shawnnoreply@blogger.com0