One pet project I had for the underlying code was sub topics. Not sure why I wanted this. Must be something to do with how I like to organize data.

Anywho. This code is not complete. It may not be readily apparent to you the casual reader, but it is to me.

If you are reading this, look up a little to the filed under section. There should be a subtopic there. Nifty huh? 🙂

Today I went for my first real ride in quite a while. It felt great. I have had some health issues that have forced me to sit on the sidelines since the end of October. I was finally cleared to resume my normal activities, so I did with style.

I met with Mark at the dump this morning to go for a spin at the dump. It was perfect. The fall air was a little crisp, and the ground was just a little damp. It made the dirt perfectly tacky, but the rocks seemed to be coated with a slick layer of algae. This is normal for this neck of the woods. This first couple wet rides of the season can be a little dicey while everyone learns to ride in the wet all lover again.

The coolest part of the ride was the fog though. For most of the ride, it was clear, but on one trail we got high enough to get into the fog. I just love how it feels on my face as I ride through, and how it hushes the sounds of the city. Spectacular.

I had digger and Yoshi with me, and we weren’t planning on doing any epic rides. The route we took was just perfect for what I wanted. I felt pretty strong all day. I certainly didn’t feel like I had been off my bike for a month. The dogs just loved it. They ran like there was no tomorrow. When Mark and I stopped for a rest, they continued to romp through the woods. Near the end of the ride they started to slow down. Hard to tell, but I could see subtle clues. As soon as I let them back in the truck, they layed down and fell asleep right away.

After the ride I stopped for a cup of coffee and an oversized, home made oatmeal chocolate chip cookie. Mmmm, fantastic.

It’s great to be back. Later on this week I might be heading out for a night ride! I can’t wait.

One mailing list I am on covers interesting or weird news items. Todays email contained a jewel about how a lawsuit on behalf of some New York children that has been filed against McDonalds blaming McDonalds for their health problems and obesity.

How ??? What??? This is completely ridiculous.

First off, take some responsibility for your own actions or inactions. Eating at McDonalds every day can in no way be considered healthy. It is not their fault if you make the choices you do.

What would people say if an obese person walked into McDonalds, ordered lunch, and was refused based on the grounds they were obese? A new lawsuit would be entered claiming that McDonalds discriminates against fat people.

They are damned if they do, and damned if they don’t.

Something about this story just got to me.

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http://www.medrants.com/archives/000977.html
http://news.findlaw.com/ap/f/1310/11-20-2002/20021120144502_53.html

From Coffee Break
AND A TOY FOR THE KIDS

McDonald’s has asked a federal judge in New York to throw out
a class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of New York kids who —
the suit claims — have suffered health problems such as
diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity from dining too
often beneath the Golden Arches. A lawyer for the plaintiffs
accused McDonald’s of being responsible for a national epidemic
of obesity among children, by serving up food high in fat,
sugar and cholesterol. One of the plaintiffs is a teenager from
the Bronx who said he ate at McDonald’s for every meal while
he lived at a homeless shelter for three years. Another plain-
tiff — a 13-year-old Staten Island boy who carries 278 pounds
on his 5-foot, 4-inch frame — said he eats at Mickey D’s three
or four times a week. A lawyer for the fast-food chain argued
that McDonald’s should not be held accountable for the health
problems of people who eat there, because people have known
for a long time what happens when they eat hamburgers and
fries.

<inhale>

Mmmm, I love the smell of a freshly printed CD. Today the CD of choice happens to be the newly released AudioSlave disc.

For a little background info, AudioSlave is comprised of the Rage Against The Machine drummer (Brad Wilk), basist (Tim Commerford), guitarist (Tom Morello), and Chris Cornell formerly of Soundgarden.

Quite simply this album is amazing. So many different sounds and tempos, yet there is an underlying sound that links everything together. It is hard fo rme to put into words, but the first time I listened to the entire album was such a treat. It almost gave me goosebumps. This album was everything I was hoping for, and then doubled! It seems like such a steal for only $15.

There are several songs that must be turned up to fully appreciate them. Then there are a few slower ones that just lull you to submission before beating you with the next song.

If you even remotely liked Soundgarden or Rage Against the Machine, I have two words for you. BUY IT!

Not later today, not tomorrow. Leave the computer, run to your nearest record store, slap down the cash, and prepare yourself.

Ever wondered what the internet thinks of you? Well, head over to the Googlism page, and find out.

I sound like an incredibly interesting guy. Here are my results.

Late in the evening of Friday, November 8, 2002 Greg Fox undertook a mission. The end result isn’t anything tangible, but Greg now feels better. The mission wasn’t exciting, nor was it imperative. It was simply something he wanted to do.

Sleuthing about in the underbelly of this blog, Greg went to work.

What the hell am I talking about?

Well, I decided to do some blog work this weekend. My goal? HTML and CSS validity.

End result? Success!

The underlying code for the blog had some nasties in it, but after a few hours of work, the HTML validates, and so does the CSS. I then took on the task of paring down my CSS file, and beefind it up a little to hold relative font sizes instead of fixed.

Mission accomplished.

By the way, if you happen to spot something amiss, let me know, and I will try to fix it ASAP.

I found a few links this morning on Digital Imaging. The tips range from taking the picture correctly to fine tuning the end result.

5 Digital Shooting Mistakes and How to Prevent Them (Here)

These are some great tips on how to get your pictures to look goof right frmo the camera.

How to Use a Digital Camera (Here)
Basic tips on using a digital camera

Point and Shoot Techniques (Here)
These tips apply to film and digital cameras.

How to Make a Good JPG (Here)
Once you have the digital image on your computer, how to make the end result look great.

One guys opinion (Here)
Some simple digital camera tips (some ideas I might try out in the future).

This is a slightly belated Hallowe’en post. The night before Halloween Sue and I headed to a friends place for a pumpkin carving party. It was fun, and some of the creations were pretty amazing. At the time of this writing, not all the captions for the pictures I took are done, but you can view the pictures at my Hallowe’en 2002 page.

I accidentally deleted one of my posts. This was functionality I coded to the base Slasp code. This version of delete, actually removed it from the underlying database. The problem is, I can’t remember what it was that I deleted. Stupid, stupid, stupid. I quickly wrote a different version of the delete that doesn’t actually remove it from the database. I won’t make that mistake again.

Two days ago I made my way to Vancouver for a Tea Party concert. Not just any Tea Party concert though. They were playing with an orchestra. Actually, I was a whole lote more than just that. They had a dancer, a cellist, an opera soprano, indian drummers, and more.

By far this was the best concert I have ever been to, simply for the music. I still get goosbumps thinking about it. Read on for a recap.

I knew this was going to be a good concert, but really I had no idea how good. I got on the 3pm ferry,Erin picked me up, and after fighting a bit of traffic we got downtown. He had a errand to run, so I walked around downtotn Vancouver for a bit, then made my way to the Lennox for a pre-concert beer. Mmmm, Kilkenny.

7:45 rolls by, and we walk a block up Granville to the Orpheum, get in line, and begin to wonder about the upcoming spectacle.

Now, I have seen the Tea Party in concert a few times now. A couple times in Victoria, and once in Vancouver (I think). I know they are an excellent live band. They thrive on the energy from the crowd, which in turn thrives on the outpouring offered up by these three amazing musicians. It is a synergy that must be experienced, and cannot be fully conveyed by words.

With this in mind, we made our way to our seats. Somehow, Erins friend Evan had managed to snag 4th row seats. I was expecting to be eye level with the stage. Was I in for a treat. The seats were 4th row on the balcony! Even better. We had an amazing view of the whole stage. We could see the whoel band, the orchestra, and the drummers.

The show started pretty much right on time. This is one thing I really like about theatre concerts. As soon as the first song started, I knew that this was going to be the concert of a lifetime. The blend of sounds emanating from the stage was all enveloping. It surrounded me, uplifted me, and took me to a new plane. For me it was a surreal experience. The orchestra filled in the spaces of a sound that was completely full to begin with.

Not only did the Tea Party have an orchestra behind them, they had an Indian drummer ensemble, a dancer, a cellist, and an opera soprano, each for various songs. To further enhance the visual aspect, they had a woman from the Cirque EOS who worked acrobatics with fabric that hung from the ceiling. She brought in the second half of the show.

The highlights (as far as the songs go) were Save Me, Temptation, Transmission, and .

It was amazing to see the band interact musically with the orchestra. During solo’s, the band was ripping and snarling, but just as the orchestra came back in to the mix, their sound went back to a level that complemented the orchestra, and not overpower them.

I quite literally had goose bumps through most of the show. This wasn’t because I was cold, but rather because the music was so exciting. I sang along with every song I could, clapped when I could, cheered, whistled, hooted, hollered, and ogled. This was something I wish I could have preserved forever, so I could rewatch it when I felt the need, but alas they were checking for recording devices upon entry. Originally I was thinking about bringing a disposable camera, but as soon as I saw our seat I knew that it wouldn’t have turned out any good pictures anyway, since the stage was too far away (perfect for the group, bad for cameras).