Project Insomnia

Project Insomnia is many things, but in this context it is simply a "braindump" of whatever I happen to be thinking/reading/watching/doing at the moment. Parental guidance suggested.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Sponsored Post: Vacation Rental Destinations

As a frequent Disneyland visitor and semi-frequent Walt Disney World traveler, I am aware of vacation home rental. The idea is that for extended vacations to popular destinations like Anaheim or Central Florida you would rent an actual home instead of a hotel room. Instead of renting two or three expensive hotel rooms for a large traveling group, you'd all stay in one big rental home. With a kitchen, laundry facilities and entertainment options, you could actually save money and that's definitely a plus. Have I used a vacation home rental myself? Well, no, mostly because the opportunity hasn't really been there for me. But it's something to strongly consider next time I travel with a group.

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post for VacationRental.org via PayPerPost. Though the content and opinions expressed are mine, I am being paid to write it.
|| Andrew, 10:15 AM || || link ||

I'm a Mac. Are you surprised?

I grew up with PCs. My first PC was an actual, original IBM PC model 5150 (which still lives, dormant for decades now, in my garage). Along the way, I worked on Commodores (VIC-20 and C-64), an Osborne, a Sinclair ZX-80, and there must have been an Apple ][ in there somewhere. But the PC standard won out and by the late 80s that was all I used. I went through a series of ever-more-powerful PCs, mostly home-built but some mass-market branded, for a number of years. I got to the point where I knew Windows, up through XP, like the back of the proverbial hand.



Meanwhile, Apple was evolving the Mac OS and finally released OS X, a true Unix-class OS with no legacy baggage. I watched from afar but as the OS and machines got better and better, I thought that I might be interested in making a switch--especially when Apple moved to Intel processors and it became possible to easily run Windows on Macs. Finally, I decided that when my then-current PC (a Dell Inspiron laptop) died, I'd buy a Mac notebook to replace it. Perversely, the Dell hung on for a year or two past its expected lifetime, but finally gave up the ghost when I (accidentally, I swear!) spilled most of a bowl of soup into it while working at home one day.



So I bought a MacBook Pro. I acclimated myself to OS X very quickly and was able to keep my Windows applications and workflows mostly intact with VMWare, running Windows side-by-side on OS X. But then a strange thing happened: I found I really didn't need Windows on my Mac after all. I tried keeping VMWare turned off for a week, then for a month, and then I just didn't turn it back on again and finally uninstalled it. There isn't anything that I could do on my Dell on Windows XP Pro that I can't do on my Mac, but (in my experience, as always) OS X beats Windows in the usability and stability department by a mile. And it's trite and over-used, but the Mac does indeed "just work". Things I want to do are right where I subconsciously expect them to be and work the way I instinctively want them to. There's tons of power under the hood, since OS X is a true Unix, but I don't need to deal with it unless I have to, or want to.



So yes, after years and years of being a PC, I'm a Mac.

|| Andrew, 10:14 AM || || link ||

Thursday, November 12, 2009

I ran 2.33 miles around the Epcot Resort area this morning.

Here's the route: on MapMyRun
|| Andrew, 9:56 PM || || link ||

My vanity plate is OMNIMVR

"OmniMover" is the generic name for the ride vehicle system used in the Haunted Mansion and other Disney attractions. The word has always appealed to me so when I discovered "OMNIMVR" was available I had to get it for my first new car.

|| Andrew, 8:54 PM || || link ||

Friday, November 06, 2009

Forgive me, supreme release engineer deity, for I have sinned.

I have coded multithreaded recursive Windows command scripts which call other multithreaded recursive Windows command scripts which then call Ant scripts. I have caused Window scripts to execute code on Linux servers. Further, I have exhibited pride about these actions. What shall my penance be, O supreme release engineer deity?

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|| Andrew, 5:51 PM || || link ||

You'll probably see me in my combat boots and jeans

combat boots

A properly broken-in pair of combat boots are the most comfortable footwear I've ever owned. I've had a pair or two ever since getting out of the Army.


blue jeans
Why does anyone wear jeans? They're comfortable, casual and look good. With the combat boots (see above) and a dark sweater I'm ready for work or nearly anything else.




|| Andrew, 8:50 AM || || link ||

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

The very best cold remedy is matzo ball soup, from Max's.





Matzo ball soup, from Max's, is what I request every time I'm sick, and it almost always works. Huge matzo ball in the best chicken soup ever.

|| Andrew, 4:54 PM || || link ||

Palo Alto, CA to New York City, NY

Ask me to drive cross-country and this is what you get.

This is not actually the route I'd pick, though it is what you get if you ask Google for "Palo Alto to New York" without any specifications. I'd probably stick with the suggested route early on, through Tahoe and Reno, and then branch off the Interstate a bit.

|| Andrew, 11:10 AM || || link ||

There's cat food in my pantry, among other things

cat food

With three cats, always hungry all the time, we need to keep a lot of cat food (both canned and dry) on hand. We stock up at Pet Club whenever there's a sale on cans, almost always the 3 oz. Nutro Max Cat in various flavors.


Aussie cookies / Aussie bites



Aussie bites or Aussie cookies are tasty, energy-rich little morsels which are just right for a quick breakfast with some coffee or a protein shake.


|| Andrew, 10:43 AM || || link ||

Coffee, usually iced but sometimes hot, wakes me up in the morning

Iced coffee is especially good because I can drink it faster, thereby getting the caffeine kick all the quicker. Hot coffee is okay when I don't need to be awake right away but can come to consciousness more gradually.

|| Andrew, 10:24 AM || || link ||

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