Not Cool Google

So I was at work the other day shelving books when I spotted a title that interested me. Usually I pull out my phone and scan the cover in the Amazon app to download a sample. In this case the book was on sale for cheap so I went right ahead to buy it. Only, …

Morality Sopranos Style

I've recently returned to watching The Sopranos and I find it oddly still resonating 13 years after it ended. As a fan of mob stories I shouldn't be too surprised, but in such changed world from the start of the millennium I do find it interesting. Maybe nothing's changed, maybe everything has, but one thing …

Missed Opportunity

I've finished watching all 98 episodes of Star Trek Enterprise some 15 years after it went off the air. Is it deserving of the moniker, "the show that killed Star Trek"? Probably not, but it certainly is my least favorite of the franchise. I do think it is a perfect example of a show that …

Never Own Content Again

How's that title grab you? We are getting closer and closer to that reality. How many subscription services have you signed up for? Nextflix, Spotify, Audible, the list is long, and they all promise you tons of content. The important part is don't get too attached to it. What happened to me recently is I …

Scammy Scammers and How They Scam

So a little over a month ago I had an ad come across my Facebook feed for a mechanical Bluetooth keyboard. I had seen these before and knew they usually go for over $200. This one was only $59.99 minus a $3 discount so $56.99. Shipping was another $7.79 bringing the total up to $64.74. …

Disappearing eBooks

DRM Digital Rights Management has jumped back into the headlines with the closing of Microsoft's eBook store. Users of the store found not only was the store closing but it was also taking it's books with it. https://futurism.com/microsoft-closing-ebook-store The DRM software that comes loaded with the file makes this as easy as flipping a switch …

What is it With Gifts

I figure this is as good a time as any to talk about gifts. Not the kind that haunt your credit card statement and are covered in shiny paper and ribbons. Instead I'm talking about talent and what appears to world as a gift. My first year of college, when I was in the music …

Evil Thoughts

I was watching an add for the newest Grinch movie and something caught my ear. There was a line about the Grinch being a lonely orphan. That was something new. How does that bit of information affect the perception of the Grinch as the evil being responsible for stealing The Whos of Whoville's Christmas? Should …

The Big Move: Day 7

We have arrived. Almost. We're about 10 minutes from the apartment in a Comfort Inn. Tomorrow we get the keys and the movers arrive with half of our stuff. The other half will show up in the Pod on Wednesday. Then we get to play, where the hell did we pack that. About that picture. …

The Big Move: Day 6

We made it to Oregon some 1,040 miles from where we started. We have another 284 to go to get to Portland. By then we will be above these wild fires. We drove through some pretty burned up areas. The air is kind of smokey too. It's a little unsettling. According to the map there …