Professor Chris Hall has a funny collection of limericks over at his blog, Spacecraft.

(Think Lewinsky and Kaczynski).

Posted by: JohnL at 11:12 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I found this "polygraph" meme at Robert's place. Funny thing is, I could have almost incorporated all of his answers by reference.

Here are the true/false questions with my answers and commentary:

1. I'm at my best in the early morning. False - At least, not until I've consumed my "breakfast" (see number 2). I believe that the world is run by a vicious and evil conspiracy of morning people. Why should they set the rules, just because they're the first ones out of bed?? What sadist on the Plano school board determined that 7:45 is a good time for kids to start school?

2. I start each day with a healthy breakfast. - False - Rob had a great answer here, though with the recent news about coffee and antioxidants, I would argue that my 3-4 cups of coffee for breakfast are actually good for me. I am a two-meal-a-day person, with a nighttime snack/dessert usually around 11:00.

3. I'm always sure to get at least 7 hours of sleep each night. - False - What Robbo said: "Actually, it's more like five. (See answers to Questions 1 and 7.)" I blog, play piano, or watch movies/cable at night when everyone else in the house has retired.

4. I enjoy my job. -True - Lawyering is sometimes a pain, but my current job as an in-house generalist for a high-tech company has to be a dream gig to beat all dream gigs in the legal field.

5. I get along with most everyone. -True - I am normally an introverted personality type, but I can put on a good mask and pretend to like people. Once I get comfortable with a group, I am usually seen as a nice guy.

6. I'm looking forward to the new season of tv shows this year. Mostly False - I don't really look forward to much except for the remainder of the new Battlestar Galactica, South Park (which I can finally see now that we have cable) , and the new season of Desperate Housewives (even though I'm sure it will jump the shark within the first couple of episodes of the season).

7. I make sure I take some time for myself every day. True - I try to spend 3 to 4 hours a night to myself, reading, writing, playing Xbox, or watching a movie.

Posted by: JohnL at 09:37 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Eric came up with a great Heinlein-themed idea. First, list Heinlein's examples of the accomplishments that distinguish a [generalist] human from a [specialist] insect. Then identify the ones he has actually done. He solicited comments, but I thought this would make a great "meme" game.

First, the original Heinlein:

A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.

I have taken the list, as broken out by Eric, and bolded the items I have actually done (with explanatory notes in most cases).

• Change a diaper
(More than I care to remember.)

• Plan an invasion
(But only if computer strategy games count!)

• Butcher a hog
(Does gutting and cleaning fish count?)

• Conn a ship
(Actually, a ski boat, but who's counting?)

• Design a building
(My kids' play fort at our old house...)

• Write a sonnet
(High school English class assignment.)

• Balance accounts


• Build a wall


• Set a bone


• Comfort the dying


• Take orders
(Not military, just corporate hierarchy).

• Give orders
(Ditto.)

• Cooperate


• Act alone


• Solve equations
(Did great with basic calculus, but foundered upon the rocks of the 8:00AM Differential Equations "weed-out" class at UT-Austin).

• Analyze a new problem
(A typical day in the life of an in-house lawyer).

• Pitch manure


• Program a computer
(BASIC, PROLOG, PASCAL, HTML, CSS)

• Cook a tasty meal


• Fight efficiently
(Not too good at fighting. I tend to talk my way out of things. I am in good shape, and am sure I could be a sheepdog if the time came.)

• Die gallantly
(Not yet!)

I'm gonna tag Robert, The Maximum Leader, Chan, Lynn, and Ted with this one but relieve them of any expectation to pass it along further, unless they want to.

Posted by: JohnL at 09:53 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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