scottsimpson.net

“SDSU’s speech-language program is ranked 30th and the audiology Program is ranked 49th on the U.S. News & World Report ranking of best graduate schools of speech-language pathology and audiology.” … you know, there are some factoids better left in the bottom drawer… [from the SDSU website]

So, it’s Thanksgiving, quite possibly the worst day of the year to be a turkey. But it’s good for us carnivores. And it’s also a great time to see family and friends. Granted, the first friend I saw was Lisa, from San Diego. But I plan to meet up with Kevin and Naj and John as well. Going out with the cousins tomorrow also.

So I brought my wireless access point home so I could use my notebook all over the house. It’s sitting on my desk, so I can get to it easily. Where does my notebook spend the majority of its time? On my desk, a foot away from the wireless access point. I get great signal…

It’s been great being home (and I still have half of this trip to go), even though I forgot my camera and socks in San Diego. At least it doesn’t look like the city will be on fire when I return next time…

Happy Thanksgiving Eve Eve Eve Eve! (hey — it’s just as invented a holiday as Thanksgiving itself) Not that it’s a bad thing — I think it’s wonderful that a holiday was created for people to get together without having to do something religious.

I’m looking into re-doing this site — the new color scheme isn’t permanent, it’s just kind of a transitory thing. I’m thinking of using a photo of me, but I don’t have any good photos of me. If you have any good photos of me, please send them to me and destroy any copies.

I need something. I don’t know what it is, but I know I need it. If you have any ideas, please tell me. What I don’t need:

Whoever invented the javascript command that pops up a new window should be taken out and beaten. Whoever uses the command for advertising should likewise be taken out and beaten. There should be lots of taking out and beating, until people stop using pop-up ads. There should at least be a fine or somethng. How effective can it possibly be? I’ve never heard of anyone who appreciates the fine advertisements being slathered across their screen, I’ve never heard of anyone who actually bought anything from such an ad, and if I ever do hear of someone that does, I’m not talking to them anymore. What could be a less effective method of advertisement? I’ve been in the room when people actually unplug their computers as the last resort to get the ads off their screen.

Get it through your heads, you horrid excuses for advertisers… it’s a bad idea to drive your audience away. If you operate a company and your advertising agency uses pop-up ads, fire them. They are uncreative and narrow-minded.

There are ways to deal with the ads, most notably a browser and a little baby application. Mozilla (the browser) has a rather nice popup blocker, and Ad-Aware (the application) is capable of removing adware from your computer. Computer users would do well to have both on hand.

Song of the day: Superhyperspastic by sugarcult

Well, I’ve been rather busy and I will continue to be. But I hope to try to manage it in the coming weeks with the following resolutions: I will go to the gym, and I will eat more healthily. These are both predicated by my desire to be more healthy, as my practices have slipped somewhat from last year.

In other news, Mike and I went to the border today (this side) to shop at the outlets there, and I picked up some stuff for Oxford. Photos may be forthcoming. It’s amazing how much more inexpensive things are there than in the retail stores. I’m not going to the mall anymore. (40% off a nice coat)

I have a Geography and an Accounting test on Tuesday, which are going to be really really fun.

It’s time for bed now.

Well, it’s another Friday, which means I have some free time today (imagine!) In this free time, Michael and I are going for a late breakfast at a place that comes highly recommended.

In other news, not much has been happening. I still need a job. If you have an extra one, could you send it to me?

Song of the day: 21st Century Digital Boy by Bad Religion

Well, it’s Saturday, and that means two things: Yesterday was Friday, and tomorrow is Sunday. It also means that I got to sleep until 6PM to finally catch up on the sleep I’ve been missing for a while. It means I got to go to the gym finally and I’ll be starting a routine pilgrimage to the gym every other day or so. It means that I get to start two papers tomorrow. It means, most importantly of all, that it was Disconnect Day. This is a concept I’ve been working on for a while, and I think I’m going to adopt it. Disconnect Day is a day wherein IM’s, cell phones, and emails go unanswered for 24 hours because these devices are off or ignored. Emergencies, of course, do not apply to the above, and would best be handled via cellphone or my room phone, which currently does not work because both of my cordless phones don’t seem to like charging.

I’m in the study lounge right now, partly because I’ve never been here, and partly because I’m attempting to meet people that have lived near me for a few months now. But there’s no one here. So I can’t meet them. That’s one of the disadvantages to having a single room — it’s very … single. And isolated. Which is nice sometimes, but annoying at other times.

But yeah. In other news, I’m going to Oxford this winter, to learn about international politics from some of the worlds’ best educators. We’ll be living in student housing and all that jazz. And now I can say things like ‘back in my days at Oxford…’

But other than that, things are going pretty well. Michael’s in Hong Kong for the weekend (!), Adelle is coming down next weekend, and I’ll be looking for a job in the very near future.

A strange thing is happening … I noticed that as soon as I got my PowerBook, my dependence on technology seems to be flagging. I still need some things, thats for sure, but I don’t find myself itching to get back to my computer to check my email or away messages. Maybe I’ve matured into accepting the presence of technology just like one accepts the presence of cars or something. It’s there, but you don’t really think about it. I don’t know, thats not too well developed yet. I’d like to write something about it though, because the intersection between technology and culture interests me very much.

Song of the day: Edwin McCain - I’ll Be (Acoustic)