"...the famed Russian hospitality is mostly just the Russian love for seeing a foreigner drunk."
- Bruce Chatwin?
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Friday, October 21, 2011
Sunday, June 07, 2009
Strutting my stuff in San Antone....
One of my missions on my San Antonio trip was....
I'd bought my mother one of those electronic picture frames a few years ago. More recently, I bought her another one (having forgotten about the first). She gratefully commented that the second one would get an honored place right next to the first in a box in her closet. So I figured it was about time I helped her set these things up with pictures of her loved ones. OK, mission accomplished, and they seem nicer now that they work for her.
During the process, I found out that she often needed to re-scale pictures, and spent quite a bit of time doing so. OK, me too. Not the only one, either - once my friend Heather's mom needed to resize a couple of photos to submit to an art show, and I helped out with that. So I decided to do what I do best (no, not "Tubthumping") and write a little application for her: now she just clicks on her "scalepix" icon, fills her "c:\shrink" directory with copies of pictures she wants smaller, clicks "Go" (or optionally, sets the desired width first if she doesn't want them 400 bits wide) and everything in the "shrink" directory gets shrunk. I can use that one myself at home, and anybody that wants one is welcome to a copy.
I'd bought my mother one of those electronic picture frames a few years ago. More recently, I bought her another one (having forgotten about the first). She gratefully commented that the second one would get an honored place right next to the first in a box in her closet. So I figured it was about time I helped her set these things up with pictures of her loved ones. OK, mission accomplished, and they seem nicer now that they work for her.
During the process, I found out that she often needed to re-scale pictures, and spent quite a bit of time doing so. OK, me too. Not the only one, either - once my friend Heather's mom needed to resize a couple of photos to submit to an art show, and I helped out with that. So I decided to do what I do best (no, not "Tubthumping") and write a little application for her: now she just clicks on her "scalepix" icon, fills her "c:\shrink" directory with copies of pictures she wants smaller, clicks "Go" (or optionally, sets the desired width first if she doesn't want them 400 bits wide) and everything in the "shrink" directory gets shrunk. I can use that one myself at home, and anybody that wants one is welcome to a copy.
Friday, June 05, 2009
Detroit City
Home folks think I'm big in Detroit city.
From the letters that I write, they think I'm fine.
But by day, I make the cars,
And by night I make the bars,
If only they could read between the lines...
Nope, not making cars or bars here (shades of Rapture!), and no need to read between the lines...not that anybody thinks I'm big here. They're beginning to load people to my flight here.....so that was hardly worth paying the wireless charge.
You really feel like a homeless person when you want to find electric power at an airport!
Thursday, May 21, 2009
If you didn't want to book the fright....
...how about a cruise?
I'll stick with the frights....a flight to Texas on the fifth to see my mum!
Our guarantee
We guarantee adventure
We guarantee that you will experience at least two hijacking attempts by pirates or we will refund half your money back, including gun rental charges and any unused ammo (mini gun charges not included).
I'll stick with the frights....a flight to Texas on the fifth to see my mum!
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Waiting impatiently for that fress feeling? Stinks?
This has got to be the solution for YOU! (I don't know how GUYS manage to live without it)
Click here for Engrish.com
Click here for Engrish.com
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Good times with the merry monarch....
Last night we went to Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada to see one of the less well-known Shaw plays, "In Good King Charles's Golden Days". To my knowledge there has never been a bad production at Niagara-on-the-Lake's Shaw Festival, and this one didn't change things....although it is the earliest in the season we have ever gone, and there were a few rough spots (several stumbles in the overall elegantly delivered lines, plus a prop falling distractingly at the edge of the stage - the first time I've ever even noticed a flaw).
I had to explain a few things to my wife, as this play in particular is deeply steeped in history - it was meant to be quite obvious that "Rowley" was King Charles II incognito (to the extent that George Fox, founder of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), actually addressed him as "Charles Stuart" once), but Jocelyn did not pick up on that at first - even though the first act ended in an angry wrestling match between Isaac Newton and prince James (later to briefly be James II before being replaced, as Charles II had warned him in the play if he insisted on his Catholicism, by the Protestant William and Mary).
Before the play we had dinner at the pleasant (but pricy) Shaw Cafe - can't beat the convenience of eating right across the street, and food and wine were good. Just before the play we went to a wine ship and shared a flight ($10 canadian) of icewine...Jocelyn particularly liked the Cabernet Franc (a red).
Speaking of royalty, but not of stalking them, this little item here deals with the latter part, or the people who do it (HT MR).
I had to explain a few things to my wife, as this play in particular is deeply steeped in history - it was meant to be quite obvious that "Rowley" was King Charles II incognito (to the extent that George Fox, founder of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), actually addressed him as "Charles Stuart" once), but Jocelyn did not pick up on that at first - even though the first act ended in an angry wrestling match between Isaac Newton and prince James (later to briefly be James II before being replaced, as Charles II had warned him in the play if he insisted on his Catholicism, by the Protestant William and Mary).
Before the play we had dinner at the pleasant (but pricy) Shaw Cafe - can't beat the convenience of eating right across the street, and food and wine were good. Just before the play we went to a wine ship and shared a flight ($10 canadian) of icewine...Jocelyn particularly liked the Cabernet Franc (a red).
Speaking of royalty, but not of stalking them, this little item here deals with the latter part, or the people who do it (HT MR).
Interestingly, one of the first cases of what we now call erotomania or de Clérambault's syndrome, the delusional belief that another person - usually of higher status - is in love with you, featured the British Royal Family.
de Clérambault described the case of a 53 year old French woman who believed King George V was in love with her and would interpret twitches in the curtains of Buckingham Palace as secret love signals from the monarch.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Economic Stimulus you can believe in.....
Being quite pro-immigration (after all, I am an immigrant myself!), this item struck me as more than just amusing. Why isn't it being done?
To be fair, encouraging immigration of the well-to-do is actually quite common, although typically on the WEALTHIER end of that spectrum. Almost any country is willing to host a billionaire.
To be fair, encouraging immigration of the well-to-do is actually quite common, although typically on the WEALTHIER end of that spectrum. Almost any country is willing to host a billionaire.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
I admire his sense of humor...
The guy in this story might have been a loser, but talk about a good loser!
The prank resulted in him becoming a national laughingstock, an indecent picture of him becoming widely available, and the end of his marriage.
His reaction?
Perhaps he is merely trying to lull them into a false sense of security while he thinks up a revenge prank that will top it.
HT The Agitator
The prank resulted in him becoming a national laughingstock, an indecent picture of him becoming widely available, and the end of his marriage.
His reaction?
“There’s no doubt I’ve been done good and proper by the lads from Liverpool.
“It was cruel, but I’ll hold my hands up and say they really wound me up.”
Perhaps he is merely trying to lull them into a false sense of security while he thinks up a revenge prank that will top it.
HT The Agitator
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Stupid human tricks
Trying to see what you can get past airport security.
I'll stick with amusements less likely to lead to an enthusiastic cavity search. Not that there's anything wrong with you if you like that sort of thing.
I'll stick with amusements less likely to lead to an enthusiastic cavity search. Not that there's anything wrong with you if you like that sort of thing.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Kissing rules....
I didn't realize it was that formal, but apparently every social group has rules for greeting kisses (as opposed to actual smooching), and sometimes these change. Some of the comments to that post were funny, such as the one speculating on where exactly in a "3 cheek kiss" the third cheek would be.
Careful study of these customs might inform you of where to travel for the maximum number of kisses.
Careful study of these customs might inform you of where to travel for the maximum number of kisses.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
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