First Charley, now Frances

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When Hurricane Charley hit Florida, my grandparents had to be evacuated to a shelter for the duration of the storm. During their time there, Grandpa suffered a fall, ended up in their retirement home’s hospital (more, more, more) after they returned from the shelter, and was just able to come home to Grandma on Friday.

Now, however, with Hurricane Frances bearing down on Florida, word has come that it’s highly likely that they will have to evacuate again.

Hello Everyone –

It is with a heavy heart that we are watching Hurricane Frances bear down on the East Coast of Florida.

We are in full preparation for another evacuation to our hurricane shelter. We feel that it is more prudent to be prepared and not need to evacuate than to be blindsided. I’m sure that each of you has been in contact with your Mom or Dad and have been given an update from them as well.

The last update from our meteorologist indicates that Frances will make landfall somewhere between West Palm Beach and Vero Beach after dusk Friday night. In Ft. Myers we can expect sustained winds between 40 and 70 mph from Friday night through Saturday. Due to the damage caused by Hurricane Charley twenty days ago we feel that to remain in King’s Crown for the duration would be risky.

Please rest assured that we will make sure that your parent’s safety and security is our utmost priority. We are asking that calls to our main number be limited so that we may focus all of our attention on hurricane preparation.

I also expect that we will be without phone service and e-mail capability for an undetermined amount of time before, during and sometime after the storm. Please be understanding if there are things that we were working on for your Mom or Dad that will need to be postponed until after the hurricane is passed.

Should we not need to evacuate I will send out a follow up e-mail to let you all know. Until then, please send us your prayers for our state as we brace for another round of bad weather!

Stacey Furbay, RN, BSHCL
King’s Crown

Hurricane Frances

I was afraid something like this was going to happen as soon as I saw this graphic of the storm’s approach that BoingBoing linked to yesterday. According to their post, as of yesterday, conditions were “favorable” for the storm to become a Category 5 hurricane — the strongest on the scale.

As before, thoughts, prayers, and good mojo are always appreciated — and not just for my family, but for all the people and families in Florida who are going through this.

iTunes: “Aboriginal” by Pigface from the album A New High in Low (1997, 3:09).

Bumbershoot tips

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A re-post from last year — some rambling from me on how best to approach this upcoming weekend’s Bumbershoot festival (which, unfortunately, I’ll only be hitting two days of this year, due to my workplace not closing down for Labor Day).

Some general tips and approaches I use for getting through the weekend:

I carry as little as possible, so I don’t wear myself down with a big bag or anything. Camera, wallet, a book to scribble down what I’m doing and seeing so the pictures make sense, and that’s about it.

The Bumbershoot guides published in the Seattle Weekly and the Stranger are godsends. Before each day starts, I browse through to find anything that sounds like it might be interesting, whether or not I’ve heard of the artist, and mark it on the schedule (last year I found that the Seattle Weekly’s guide had better rundowns on the acts, but the Stranger’s single-sheet 4-page schedule was easier to keep in my pocket). Then, when I’m wandering around, I just see what I’ve marked off, and randomly choose one for whatever time it is to check out. If I like them, great, if they don’t quite hold my interest, then there’s plenty of other choices.

Don’t be afraid to deviate from your plan, though. There’s so much good stuff out there that it’s impossible to see it all, so you shouldn’t stress about missing an act — and there’s likely to be something worth seeing that you wouldn’t have picked up on just from reading about it. Not being a big reggae fan, I never would have planned to stop by Jumbalassy last year, but hearing them as I walked by sucked me right in.

Take the time to just wander around and explore all the nooks and crannies. I almost completely missed the Jazz stage last year — it’s up some stairs, kind of tucked away in a corner. I keep forgetting how big Seattle Center is, and how easy it is to lose bits and pieces of it when you’re focusing on getting from a specific point A to point B. Follow your nose. :)

Don’t forget to peoplewatch! This goes beyond just trying to navigate through the crowds — see who all is around you, pay attention to them, keep an ear out on what they’re saying. I’ve discovered some good shows that I might have missed just by hearing some random stranger get all excited about whatever band they’re heading off to see. A small crowd of people gathered somewhere might be nothing more than a momentary traffic jam, but it might also be a street performer worth watching — I discovered one of my favorite local artists this way the first year I was at Bumbershoot. Saw a crowd and decided to see what was up, ended up picking up a couple CDs and have been a fan ever since.

And most importantly — have fun! Enjoy the music and the sun, browse through the craft booths, go play in the fountain, or wade in the pool. We’re blessed with a huge festival with a ton of things to do on a gorgeous weekend — don’t let it go to waste!

iTunes: “Peach (Cut.Rate.Box)” by Beborn Beton from the album Tales From Another World (1999, 4:43).

Kids’ ideas about sex

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Sex columnist Dan Savage recently asked his readers to submit letters detailing their childhood misconceptions about sex. The resulting two columns are hilarious…

Part one — the boys:

I was about 10 or 11 when we visited my Aunt Edie. I’d already had “the talk,” and I had a fairly good idea of what “adult” meant. Adult movies. Adult videos. Adult magazines. I was told that my Aunt Edie now lived in an “adult community.” Now, my aunt was a good 80 years old by this point, and I’d met her wrinkly ass at a few family gatherings, so when we got to the (clearly labeled) adult community, I got really creeped out. I asked my parents if they were really supposed to bring a kid in here, and upon more questioning explained my reasoning. After laughing so hard my dad had to stop the car, they cleared everything up.

Part two — the girls:

I went with my dad to visit his best friend, who bred Saint Bernards. While there, I saw this large wooden contraption and asked Dad what it was for. Turns out it was a breeding support, so the dog (who is usually well over 150 pounds) doesn’t hurt the bitch. My dad explained what a mommy dog and a daddy dog do to make puppies. He explained as accurately as a 4-year-old could understand, and I seemed to get what he was talking about. Later that day, we came home and I ran up to my mother. “Mom! Guess what I learned today!” I then proceeded to give a fairly detailed description of what a mommy dog and a daddy dog do to make puppies, followed by the exclamation, “You and Dad should do that!” You see, I wanted a puppy.

(via MeFi)

iTunes: “Dreams” by Cranberries, The from the album Alterno-Daze: 90’s Natural Selection (1995, 4:33).

What a deal!

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Y’know, it’s really a shame I don’t go to Florida State University. Turns out that they’re working on setting up a special deal with Apple…

In an effort to prevent illegal file sharing on campus, Florida State University is on the verge of finalizing a deal with Apple Computer, Inc. — a deal that would provide free iTunes software to students and allow them to download music for 99 cents per song.

I’ve gotta say, that’s one hell of a deal. iTunes for free — and individual songs for just 99 cents!?! Amazing!

\</sarcasm>

iTunes: “Come With Me” by Information Society from the album Hack (1990, 4:22).

Two digits, thousands of votes

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Diebold’s voting machines scare me more and more every time I read about them. The latest bombshell? It’s not bad enough that the individual voting machines aren’t as secure as they should be, but the tabulation machines that tally all the votes from the individual machines can be manipulated by entering two digits.

Issue: Manipulation technique found in the Diebold central tabulator — 1,000 of these systems are in place, and they count up to two million votes at a time.

By entering a 2-digit code in a hidden location, a second set of votes is created. This set of votes can be changed, so that it no longer matches the correct votes. The voting system will then read the totals from the bogus vote set. It takes only seconds to change the votes, and to date not a single location in the U.S. has implemented security measures to fully mitigate the risks.

This program is not “stupidity” or sloppiness. It was designed and tested over a series of a dozen version adjustments.

[…]

The central tabulator is far more vulnerable than the touch screen terminals. Think about it: If you were going to tamper with an election, would you rather tamper with 4,500 individual voting machines, or with just one machine, the central tabulator which receives votes from all the machines? Of course, the central tabulator is the most desirable target.

With voting systems like this installed in key states, it’s frighteningly possible that it won’t matter who anybody votes for.

(via MeFi)

Kevin and Noah

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Kevin and Noah Hanscom

My little brother and my one-month old nephew.

iTunes: “My Dream” by ATB from the album Movin’ Melodies (1999, 7:05).

I’m everywhere!

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With the addition of the new Mac OS X release of Skype, there are now a veritable plethora of ways to get ahold of me online, should anyone be so inclined.

  • Email:
    1. —@speakeasy.net]{.citation cites=”speakeasy.net”}: This address I’ve only given out to family and close friends, in an attempt to keep at least one e-mail account relatively spam-free.
    2. djwudi@myrealbox.com: These days, primarily a spamcatcher, though I’ve still got a few mailing lists going here.
    3. djwudi@mac.com: A general-purpose, publicly available inbox.
    4. michael.hanscom@gmail.com: Just set this up. I’ve sent myself a message, and that’s the most use it’s seen so far.
    5. michael@michaelhanscom.com: These days, my primary public e-mail, and my first choice for most correspondence. If you don’t have another address for me in your inbox already (and want one, for some reason), this is the one to use.
  • Instant Messaging:
    1. iChat: djwudi: My preferred IM client. Supports audio and video in addition to text chat since I’ve got an iSight.
    2. AIM: djwudi@mac.com: iChat co-operates with the AIM network, so AIM users can find me here. In theory, recent versions of AIM support video chat also.
    3. AIM: djwudi: An actual AIM account that I got ages ago, and just started using again recently when one friend for some reason couldn’t see the djwudi@mac.com iChat/AIM account.
    4. Yahoo IM: djwudi or dj_wumlautudi: Mostly used with friends in Alaska that I met during the days when I hung out in the Yahoo chat rooms.
    5. Skype: djwudi: This one, I’ve just signed up for, and haven’t actually done anything with yet. While it works as an IM program, its primary purpose is VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) — essentially, computer-based telephone service. It should allow high-quality voice conversations with other Skype users, and if I give them a little money, than I should be able to place calls to any telephone from my computer. Sounds nifty, and I’m interested in trying it out once I either find other Skype users or pony up the cash to try the computer-to-telephone function.

I think that’s it. Did I miss any?

iTunes: “Inquisition” by Skinny Puppy from the album Nettwerk Decadence (1992, 4:26).

G5 iMac

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The new G5-based iMac is up on Apple’s site. Haven’t spent a ton of time on the site, yet, but first impressions are that it’s a damn impressive piece of engineering, packing all that into such a tiny little space.

But it’s not nearly as cute as the last generation.

More thoughts later on, most likely.

Update: Actually, no update. No further thoughts. Nice new iMac, not as pretty as the last one. That’s about all I’ve got for this one. Just wanted to say something, since I’d expected I’d have more to say.

iTunes: “Hey Jupiter” by Amos, Tori from the album Boys for Pele (1996, 5:11).

New glasses are on the way

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So I’ve got new eyeglasses on the way. With any luck, they should be here in a little less than two weeks, and I’ll have them in time for my vacation. They look similar to this pair — rimless, fairly small and rectangular, with very thin silver bows, and they come with a set of clip-on shades that match the shape of the lenses exactly. Prairie assures me that they look incredibly good and nearly disappear from my face, not nearly as dominating as my current pair.

Most interesting about the eye exam is that my new pair will actually be a slightly weaker prescription than my current pair — one diopter less (whatever that is) — as my eyesight is actually slightly improving as I age. I had no idea this could happen, so it was a very pleasant surprise. Apparently, my eyes are learning to relax, gradually increasing my near-vision depth of field. According to the optometrist, while I’ll always need glasses for distance vision, I’ll never need reading glasses, and may eventually be more comfortable reading or working on a computer either without glasses, or with bifocals that have little to no adjustment in the lower, near-vision area of the lens. Pretty cool, I’d say.

So now it’s just the waiting game as the glasses are made. Since I’ve got my vacation in two weeks, the clinic is seeing if they can put a rush on the order to ensure that they arrive before I have to leave. It may not happen, but if it does, I’ll be in good shape.

Oh, and should any Seattle-area people be in the need for new glasses, I’d certainly recommend the clinic I went to (Jackson Vision Clinic, 225 12th Ave. South Suite 103, Seattle, WA, 98144, 206.322.6915). I picked them simply because they were just over in the International District within fairly easy walking distance of my apartment, they were open on Saturdays, and they took the insurance I get through work. They were quite nice to work with, though — Dr. Hoang and his staff were quite friendly. While the clinic was pretty slow on Saturday, when I went in a couple weeks ago to make my appointment, they were quite busy, and I had the rather amusing experience of being the only Caucasian and (I believe) only native English speaker in a room full of Vietnamese people. Not an entirely normal thing in my general day-to-day activities, but rather fun, actually — there were a couple families in getting glasses for their kids that day, and kids are kids and fun to watch, no matter what language they speak.

Anyway, a good clinic, good people, and I’ve got some good glasses coming my way. Pics, of course, will be posted as soon as I get the glasses in.

iTunes: “Get A Good Thing” by Jesus Jones from the album Perverse (1993, 3:23).