Foodie notes for later: While

Foodie notes for later:

• While I was at SXSW, Tom bought Sean a bunch of bananas, which meant that I came home to half a bunch of verging-on-dead bananas. The solution was, of course, Banana Bread. I found this easy and fast recipe via Google, and the results were great. Unlike a lot of other recipes I found, it only contained ingredients that were likely to be found in most non-baking households. Highly recommended!
  
• After my recent post about our upcoming cruise, Roland dropped me a line to remind me about his VanEats weblog, which contains reviews of restaurants in Vancouver. We'll be checking this one out further over the next couple of months. The Memphis Blues Barbeque House sounds perfect for the three of us.

<Sigh>. I'm a reactionary because

<Sigh>. I'm a reactionary because I believe in scientific research over "feelings." Or maybe I only believe in science (from multiple studies by multiple professors at multiple universities, no less) because I'm "frighteningly wrapped up in [my] own privilege."

Hmmm... I think that I'll change that <sigh> to <bite me>.

The Consumer Broadband and Digital

The Consumer Broadband and Digital Television Promotion Act is the renamed version of the horrible Hollings bill that would mandate copy protection in every computer, music player, and darn near every other digital device, including things like televisions. I was dismayed to see that one of my senators was a co-sponsor of the bill. So I've written her a letter about it. I'll also be sending a copy of the letter to my other senator. If you feel as strongly about this as I do, please consider writing your own letters. Letters sent in the mail are taken vastly more seriously than e-mail, faxes, or phone calls, whether we like it or not. It's worth your time and the price of a stamp.

While at SXSW, I got

While at SXSW, I got hooked on the game Fluxx, so much so that I bought a copy online during a break between conference sessions. It arrived yesterday, and now both Tom and Sean are hooked, too. You should check it out--it's fun for the whole family! (assuming that your family is as geeky as ours)

Apple Announces iClone At Macworld

Apple Announces iClone At Macworld Tokyo. I bought an iBook. Then another iBook. Then an iPod. I guess I know what I'll be getting next. The only trouble will be figuring out where to put the iChamber. And I don't like the USB connection; I can't help thinking that there would be a much faster transfer of genome sequencing information via FireWire.

Too many news stories just

Too many news stories just don't give you the context needed. Case in point: this AP story, Gramm Defends Bush Camp on Enron, never once mentions that Senator Phil Gramm's wife was on the look-the-other-way board of directors of Enron, so that anything he says with regard to Enron should be taken skeptically.

Craig Shergold: The Movie.

Craig Shergold: The Movie.

Ladies and gentlemen, Elvis has

Ladies and gentlemen, Elvis has left the building: I have just turned in the final chapter for Microsoft Office v. X for Mac Inside Out. Just three chapters of author review and the frontmatter to do, and this long, long, long project will be completely put to bed. But the biggest part is behind me now. I'm so happy. And tired.

There's a fairly interesting discussion

There's a fairly interesting discussion going on over at Instapundit over which major party a (small-l) libertarian should vote for. Personally, I don't see that any party, major or minor, fits my socially-liberal, fiscally-conservative viewpoint. In practice, though, I tend to vote Democrat. I see the Democrats as wanting to interfere with how I spend my money vs. the Republicans wanting to interfere with what I do with my private life. While I can always work harder to earn more money, I only have one bedroom, so it's worth paying the Democrats off to try to keep the Republicans out of it.

The Chickenhawk Database is a

The Chickenhawk Database is a list of pundits and politicians who share "...three qualities: bellicosity, public prominence, and a curious lack of wartime service when others their age had no trouble finding the fight."

I just signed up for

I just signed up for the Weblogger CD Swap--you can, too! (Via Al)

Meg is talking about Attendee-Centered

Meg is talking about Attendee-Centered Conference Design. Scoble (who should know) responds with a few more suggestions. I've worked some on conference organizing in the past, and would love to do more of this in the future. Over the last five years, I've spoken at nearly every conference out there, and boy, do I have (more than) a few ideas about what you and your competition are and aren't doing right.

But the first question in conference organization is always, "What content can we offer that's enough to convince corporations to pay for employees to attend?"

We're thinking about spending a

We're thinking about spending a long weekend in Vancouver just before embarking on the MacMania Geek Cruise, so I need to make hotel reservations. Here's a list of places I'm looking at:

• The Rosellen Suites
  
• Coast Plaza Hotel and Suites
  
• Rosedale on Robson
  
• Hampton Inn and Suites

If anyone has any comments about any of the above, or other recommendations, please let us know! We're ideally looking for an inexpensive suite (we've found them to be sometimes cheaper than two separate rooms) with a kitchenette. And if you have any suggestions for things to do in Vancouver with a geeky 13 year old who's not interested in sports, tell me!

I recently got the new

I recently got the new Indigo Girls CD, Become You, and I was trying to figure out why one of the inside pictures looked so familiar--it's a mirror shot.

I belong to a bookclub

I belong to a bookclub with a number of local women, and we recently decided on our reading list for the next year. As a reminder to me, here's our list:

• Little Women
  
• The Hours
  
• Pavilion of Women
  
• Death of the Heart
  
• Motherless Brooklyn
  
• Bee Season
  
• Drowning Ruth
  
• Remains of the Day
  
• The Diamond Age
  
• Passage
  
• Catch-22
  
• The Sun Also Rises
  
• Death Comes for the Archbishop
  

Eclectic bunch, ain't we?

I married a meme! (applicable

I married a meme! (applicable links: 1, 2, 3, 4)

Victor Zalakos uses a number

Victor Zalakos uses a number of words to describe us on his blog, including "pretentious," "tacky," "nauseating," and "sordid." It seems that his students followed a link from our book site that said something like "learn more about us" to an entirely separate domain, and he thinks that that somehow reflects on the book. Or maybe it's just that he thinks that he's the only one who should be allowed to blog? It's hard to tell. Oh well, he may have lousy taste in jewelry, but at least he appreciates a good JavaScript book when he sees one.

Last year, eCompany.com did their

Last year, eCompany.com did their 2000 list, but this year it's Business 2.0 who released 2001's 101 Dumbest Moments in Business.

Easter is approaching. You know

Easter is approaching. You know what that means: Peeps. There are even Peeps recipes. Shudder.

Literature of the Fantastic has

Literature of the Fantastic has links to all kinds of strange and wonderful text, such as Robert W. Chambers's The King In Yellow (which I've been looking for for about 20 years).