Marcus Varsity Baseball Home Schedule

The missus and I have been talking about taking the little phisch to some baseball games this season over at our local high school. It's within walking distance, and right now, as the season's beginning, the temperatures are still cool.

I pulled up the varsity schedule, and entered all of the home dates in to a new calendar in iCal. I then exported the calendar, in .ics format, and am making it available for anyone in Flower Mound who wishes to follow the Marauders at home in 2007.

Again, this is the home schedule only, and your calendar program should support the .ics format (which pretty much any modern calendar app does).

Fat Tuesday

"Fat Tuesday" by The Friendly Indians is most apropos today. Check out some of their other songs on their music page.

Jumping on the Bandwagon

Bandwagon, going live in two days, is an iTunes backup for Mac users. They're offering free one-year subscriptions if you blog about them, and like Eric, I can be a cheap date.

Bandwagon Logo


Frenzic

Tired of Tetris™? No good at first-person shooter games? Want something quicker than world-building or war strategy games? Frenzic may be the answer you're looking for. A joint release from The Iconfactory and ARTIS Software, Frenzic is an addictive puzzle game that you can play solo or against others online. Jobs and company should seriously be looking at getting this game on the upcoming iPhone. Sorry, Windows users need not apply. Update, 1:00 PM CST: If you decide to register Frenzic, feel free to add me as a friend.

links for 2007-02-19

links for 2007-02-18

links for 2007-02-17

A pair of fatherhood quotes

"The guys who fear becoming fathers don't understand that fathering is not something perfect men do, but something that perfects the man." --Frank Pittman "We have evidence that in our own society men can rear and nurture their children competently and that men's methods, although different from those of women, are imaginative and constructive." --Kyle D. Pruett [Courtesy of the Mr. Dad newsletter.]

"Shameless Mac OS X imitator"

Julio Ojeda-Zapata, for the St. Paul Pioneer Press:

I praise Microsoft's new Windows Vista operating system, and I also curse it.

[...]

But after waiting five years — as in half a decade — for this thing, I think I should get something revolutionary, a PC operating system so astonishing it makes the competition look laughably primitive. The almighty Microsoft made this, right? So Vista--being released to consumers Tuesday--has to be jaw-droppingly superior, right?

Well, it's not. Vista hardly rocked my world during weeks of testing. It's a fine Windows upgrade, but it's also a shameless rip-off (and not quite the equal) of another major operating system, Apple Computer's Mac OS X.

That begs the question: Why not just use OS X?

Those upgrading from XP likely will have to get a new computer anyway because Vista doesn't work properly on most older PCs. [...] So, instead of purchasing a Windows PC, they could--and typically should--get an Apple Macintosh computer running OS X. [Emphasis in the original. --R]

She knows!

Well, well, well. The cat is out of the bag. I told you it might not be long. So the missus calls me while Brent and I are still at lunch, and in the course of the conversation informs me I'm "busted", that she's activated her WalkAmerica site, and she's already started emailing her friends. Now, you have to understand the different circles my wife and I run in. She's an attorney (pipe down there in the back; it's corporate law, not ambulance chasing or class-action cannibalism), so naturally a lot of her friends are attorneys, which, as a group, tend toward the wealthier side of the populace. I, on the other hand, am unemployed. You can see where I'm going with this, can't you? Given my past, most of my friends tend to be in the IT and creative fields, or in some sort of service area, and thusly, as a group, tend toward the less-wealthier side of the populace. Thus, I have to make up for this disparity in numbers of donators, and would appreciate all the help I can get. To top it all off, that minx I'm married to set her goal forty bucks above mine!

A thought while driving

So. Returning from lunch, as I drove by the KFC/Taco Bell our burg is privileged to have, I noticed the three US Postal Service delivery trucks parked next to one another near the entrance. And the thought that ran through my head was: "I'm glad they have to stay in those trucks to deliver the mail." (See, because it's Taco Bell, right? And Taco Bell serves...oh, never mind.)

Happy Birthday, Brent!

Wishing a joyous and loving birthday for you, my friend. As I stated in my comment to your post, I shall celebrate with some Lost And Found and by starting This Beautiful Mess. See you at lunch. :D

Job posting of the day

"Paris Hilton Magazine - Resourceful Customer Service Representative" Here's a couple of amusing bits (beyond the fact that Paris is using daddy's millions to start yet another meaningless "fashion" magazine):

  • Process orders that come from the internet, mail, and phone calls for paris hilton.
  • Data base upkeep for paris hilton trend.
  • Reply paris hilton to customer emails. Gosh, atrociously bad grammar aside, it sounds like you'll be working side by side with Ms. Hilton herself, doesn't it?!?! Oh! Joy of my heart, be still! In response, I shall employ 1980s Valley Girl linguistics: like, gag me with a spoon.

WalkAmerica 2007

Well, I suppose this is as good a time as any... Fundraising for the March of Dimes' WalkAmerica has begun, and once again, the missus and I will be walking with the tyke (who will be riding in a running stroller). In an attempt to get the jump on raising donations over my wife (we have a friendly competition), I'll point you to my personal WalkAmerica page. (Said jump will likely last as long as it takes from this post's publication to her reading it, so we're talking sixty seconds to a couple of weeks, folks.) Any amount is greatly appreciated. I've also placed a March of Dimes badge at the top of the blog's sidebar, so you can come to my site at any time and click on that to donate. You were all very generous last year, blowing through the first, second, and third fundraising goals I set, so I'm raising the bar this year: $400. Yes, four hundred measly dollars, but four hundred bucks that could do a world of good. And I'm starting with $25 of my own, so that only leaves $375 for the rest of you to pick up. Should be a snap, right? Right! The walk is in April, so you have plenty of time, but why wait for me to annoy you to make a donation? ;-) Thanks, all!

Beyond the Ultimate

I missed this when it went out a couple of weeks ago, prior to the Super Bowl, but better late than never, right? Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith:

On Sunday, one of us will be a world champion. We may have reached the ultimate goal for a football coach, but we know that there is more to life than football. Even when you have achieved the ultimate, someting better lies beyond.

As pro football coaches, we are also men of faith. Our faith drives us every day to seek excellence. It comforts us in the worst of times and produces hope in adversity. It is through our common faith in Jesus Christ that we have individually experienced God's love and forgiveness.

We would love to tell you more. Visit www.BeyondtheUltimate.org, and discover how you can live "BEYOND" the ultimate. The coaches have partnered with Athletes in Action to produce the site, which includes stories from players on both the Colts and Bears teams.

Genealogy meets social networking

I believe genealogy fascinates a lot of people. We've all thought about "Where did I come from?" Most of us have no memories of family beyond our grandparents, maybe our great-grandparents. (I was able to know two of my great-grandmothers, both on my dad's side, as a child.) I came across Geni through some random blog readings, and I started a family tree with myself, in the hope I can help my son understand our family history a bit when he gets older. The cool thing about Geni is that as you add people to your tree, you can invite them to sign up for the site (it's free, at least for now), and they can add to their own tree, which in turn adds to yours. Think of it as MySpace meets the family tree, social networking making genealogy more practical. After all, my dad knows a lot more about his grandparents and great-grandparents than I do, and he can add a lot more information himself that I might not even think of.

links for 2007-02-07

I confess I really like it

"What's this?"
"Viewer mail."
"It's been opened."
"I pay Suzanne an extra five dollars a week to check our mail for anthrax." Dialogue like this is why I watch Studio 60. And don't we all wish we could be so clever with the snappy talk in real life?

Some food for thought

Mike Banta:

No political slogan or hand-held sign has ever changed someone's convictions. Protests, shouting, and political battle will only polarize people on an issue. Regardless of which side wins or loses a political struggle, people will continue to believe what they did before. If you want to change your community, your nation and your world, the most effective action you can take is to introduce people to Jesus, and to demonstrate His love and compassion to them. Through His death and resurrection, all of us can be free from the effects of sin, and enjoy unlimited and joyful relationship with God. This is where changed lives come from.

It is a good thing to participate in politics as God leads. Vote your conscience. Respectfully voice your convictions in the political arena. But don't expect the election of a politician or passage of a law to change people's minds and hearts, much less their lives. Political power and law rule only through fear of consequence, not love. Let's make our focus the same as Jesus'. People are transformed when they experience love in relationship with Him.

links for 2007-02-06