BamaBlog.com - May 8-15, 2004

My husband has been running various Linux versions. I ran Knoppix Linux (not to be confused with Gnoppix) on this computer (booting from the CD). It's amazing how much Linux has improved just in the past several months. It ran very well and was easier to handle than before. The only problem was my wireless mouse - not yet recognized so I plugged in an older one.

Linux keeps getting better and better. No wonder it is making a dent in Microsoft's user base.

Call for Help (the top-watched show on TechTV - which has been cancelled by TechTV's new owner, unfortunately) has a tip for online shopping. Check this site. There might be a coupon code available to get discounts.

(P.S. I hope Comcast does not ruin TechTV when they take over completely. I already know I will miss the hosts there now.)

I like this quiz. Taking it was a little different than other quizzes. I wanted to be gray, my favorite color - or maybe bright red.

Bren from Link Harvest wants one of these LED lights. Me, too. This little light burns for 600 hours on one 9-volt battery. From ExtremeGeek.com.

I don't have good luck with flashlights. The bulbs burn out before the batteries do. Some bulbs are not replaceable. I've been using rechargeable batteries -- they work well if the item is used often.

Having gotten a soldering license for a job I once had at SCI, I tried replacing an "unchangeable" bulb and it worked. It's a shame that the bulb had to be removed that way. They should all be easily replaceable. It was not a disposable flashlight -- or so I thought.

Here's another interesting blog similar to the quote one I mentioned yesterday. It's called Link Harvest. The creator posts a link a day about whatever he thinks has merit. Here's the most recent one:

Muddy wrote about this in his blog, but it was so funny that I had to write it here, too. My husband was out in the garden yesterday. He found a baby robin that appeared to be stuck in the fence. The parents were nearby. His siblings had apparently flown off, but he was not quite ready to fly himself.

My husband thought it would be interesting to show the baby to us (my daughter was visiting), and to show Muddy, our youngest cat. Muddy was curious. He slowly came up to the bird which was held down to his level -- to sniff it over. The bird held very still. While Muddy was sniffing, the bird wiggled. It scared our cat to death. He turned and dove for cover, making a lot of noise, knocking over things in his haste to get away.

I was cracking up with laughter. Muddy likes to watch birds, but obviously not to meet them. To Muddy's credit, he did come out to take a second look, but my husband decided it was time to return the baby robin.

The two older cats did not get to see the bird because they knew exactly what to do with a bird.

Wandering around Blo.gs (a clever site address!), I found a blogger posting their favorite quote every day, titled Favorite Quotes (imagine that). They were good reading, though. Here's the most recent one:

"There is no cure for birth and death save to enjoy the interval."

George Santayana
(1863 - 1952)
Soliloquies in England

May 10, 2004 - Monday

Nurses Week

Last week was Nurses Week. The hospital published the names of all of their nurses in the local paper yesterday. My sister's and daughter's names were there. I know they work hard. My daughter has come home with bruises from patients or dropped from exhaustion and even hunger, having no time to eat. She wears a pager and can be paged even while eating lunch, then she has to leave the lunch and go back to work. She's been groped, pinched, kicked and who knows what else. In spite of all that, she likes her career. I am proud of her.

By the way, EMS Week begins May 16. Be nice to those who might save your life someday.

May 9, 2004 - Sunday

Happy Mother's Day!

I don't know how she kept her sanity. Mom had 6 children age 6 and under (two were identical twins and a 7th one came much later), yet she managed to feed us, clothe us and love us all.

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

May 8, 2004 - Saturday

Van Helsing

We saw the new movie, Van Helsing. I like Hugh Jackman - a very good actor. Van Helsing is based on a comic book and has a few comic book-type lines in it. He encounters Dr. Jekyll, Frankenstein, Dracula and 3 brides, wolfmen, Igor and more. The special effects made the movie. The story was fine.

I liked this movie except that it was played very loud -- many, many loud scenes for those with short attention spans and the ending had a sad element that I did not appreciate. I want everyone to live happily ever after in fictional movies.

Oh well, if you like special effects and evil vampires, you might like this movie.