Martin Luther King Jr. Day poll

To what extent are you (Americans) on holiday today? Are your schools closed? Banks? What else? Are you off work? Do you work for a federal institution? What about Presidents' Day - same story?

Not much closes down around here. A temporary Wisconsin resident I know, calls this "The Socialist State of Wisconsin."

bathroom project

The remodeling is going interminably slow. (Hey, that phrase doesn't quite make sense, does it?)

I'm putting the drywall and cement board up so I can do the tile, and it will probably take all fricking week. Monday is scout meeting, and thursday is a troop committee meeting, so that leaves Tuesday and wednesday to get the stuff up. Friday to go shopping for tile and other supplies, and saturday and sunday to put it up. Probably tuesday and wednesday too.

I really put in a lot of hours on it this weekend. I worked late friday, and I really pushed myself to work hard. Cyn and I went to a party on saturday evening, though. Then we had to skip the Willy Porter concert last night so I could get some work done. I was really looking forward to it, too.

car names

Where do they come up with names for cars? Some of them make sense: the Audi Quattro refers the car's all-wheel drive system, the Acura Legend inspires confidence, and the Plymouth Voyager conjures up family road trips. But others, well, you just have to wonder. We called up the actual definitions for some of these names in an attempt to understand…

1. AMC Gremlin: "a tiny imaginary mischievous creature that is blamed for faults in tools, machinery, and electronic equipment." Do you really want anything to do with gremlins when you are driving down a steep and slippery road?

2. Ford Probe: Probably the manufacturers meant probe as in space probe. However, we can't rule out another definition: "surgical instrument for exploring."
[I think most of us can think of another sort of probe.]

3. Chevy Cavalier: "showing an arrogant or jaunty disregard or lack of respect for something or somebody," or a "gallant or chivalrous gentleman, especially one escorting a lady." Which do you think they were going for?

4. Plymouth Reliant: "depending on or needing somebody or something." Wouldn't you like to be able to rely on your car, rather than have it rely on you?

5. Oldsmobile Cutlass: "a short thrusting sword with a flat and slightly curved blade used in the past, especially by sailors." This might be a better name for a boat.
[It's kind of traditional to name your car after a sword.]

6. Volkswagen Golf: "an outdoor game in which an array of specially designed clubs with long shafts are used to hit a small ball from a prescribed starting point into a hole." What if you prefer tennis or soccer? Can you still drive this car?

7. Toyota Corolla: "the petals of a flower collectively, forming a ring around the reproductive organs and surrounded by an outer ring of sepals." Well, at least the literal Latin translation of corolla is "little crown."

8. Chevy Suburban: "relating to, belonging to, or located in a suburb." Why is there no "Urban" or "Rural"?

9. Mitsubishi Mirage: "something that is unreal or merely imagined." This suggests the car may not be as good as it seems.
[Yeah, but the word sounds cool.]

10. Subaru Brat: "demanding and selfish person: somebody, either a child or an adult, who is regarded as tiresomely demanding and selfish, like a spoiled child." So, it's not surprising that Subaru has discontinued that model.

from MSN

the media

I had a conversation with a coworker last week. The first part was where he brought up the "liberal media." Which is a myth. After we were done with that part, he brought up an article he read in Reader's Digest.

Considering that that particular magazine is one of the few publications that immediately comes to my mind when I try to name one that leans either way, I thought his juxtaposition was pretty funny.

sandstone monument

While marble is dissolved by the chemicals in the atmosphere and in rainwater, sandstone is not. It is, however, vulnerable to abrasion by running water or by particles in the wind. Once water found a soft spot in the stone, it would eat it away more and more as it ran through.