Great about page (1) Apr 4, 2006
This dude used to have a great "About" page, but he must've recently changed it.  I managed to find an archived copy: 
This weblog is where I collect my thoughts on politics, technology, culture, and the other things that make up of our lives. Although this is a public space, my ruminations are not trying to be persuasive. They're just the effluent of my effort to write my mind the way I want it to read. In other words, this weblog is the product of a conversation with myself, meant only to convince myself. It is a means to develop and inform my opinions. It is also a historian of those opinions, a historian I can consult to remember where my mind has been. It's a cobweb dusting curator who happens to allow the public into its little museum of no particular interest sitting in a small town of no particular interest. Stop by if you happen to be driving through to someplace else and have some time to kill. Or, keep on going. The curator is perfectly happy tending to his cobwebs.
#technology
Intrasite links (2) Apr 3, 2006
I wrote my first almost-official WordPress plugin!  It's a relatively simple little script that displays which posts link to the post that's currently being viewed.  The problem is, it's totally incompatible with anything other than my site.  I tried to get some of the WordPress community to help me out, but I got no replies.  So I wrote it myself. #technology
Recycling (2) Apr 3, 2006
I think recycling is a hoax.  I think it was an idea created to please the environmentalists who kept complaining about waste and the hurting of animals.  It's a good idea, but I have doubts about its efficacy. 

I have a recycling can in my cubicle.  It says I can recycle "white letterhead, white typing paper, white photocopy, white memos, white computer" but not "colored paper, carbon paper, news and mags, glossy paper, food wrappers, fax paper".  [I can recycle white paper and white computers?  Awesome!  Nya!]  Who actually follows these rules?  Does anybody actually not put newspapers and colored paper in the recycling bin?  And what exactly is fax paper?  Isn't it the same as regular paper? 

My question is this:  If there are lots of people like me who don't follow recycling rules to the T, is there someone at the recycling center who catches this?  Are there people who sort through my recycling and take out all the stuff that's not recyclable?  If so, how many people do this, and how much money are we paying them?  I don't mean to sound like a jerk (that's hard to believe), but it sounds like recycling costs more money than it saves.  I know that's not the point of it, but it just kind of seems like a money pit.  There, I said it. 

And what about bottles and cans from my house?  Do I have to clean out the peanut butter jar before I put it in the recycling?  If not, is there someone at the recycling center who does this?  I don't envy that person.  Cleaning old food out of cans and bottles is disgusting.  If no one does this, is there old peanut butter in recycled plastic and glass?  If so, doesn't anyone think that's kind of gross? #psychology
Cell phone noises (4) Apr 2, 2006
C'mon, people.  I'm noticing that there are still a few people out there who don't quite get it.  Here's the deal:  When you're in a room/building/place where having your cell phone ring would be a rude interruption, turn the volume down.  I understand if you forgot to turn it down before you entered the room.  Not a big deal.  We all forget some things.  But if you didn't turn it down beforehand, put in a good effort at silencing it when someone calls.  Yeah sure you disrupted the meeting and made everyone stare at you.  Sure you broke everyone's concentration as you rifled through your pockets or your purse.  The least you could do is silence it or turn it off as fast as you can.  Put in a little effort. 

Now, for those people that didn't know about this before, cell phones have a startup and shutdown noise.  Usually they play a stupid little song or make some weird noises.  Every cell phone on earth does this.  It's nothing new, and it's nothing out of the ordinary.  Since we all know this, maybe you could also put a little effort into turning your phone's volume off before you shut it town in said room/building/place.  As if the phone call wasn't a big enough interruption, now everyone has to listen to your stupid shutdown noise. #technology
Cats relieve stress Apr 1, 2006
I've heard many times that cats (and perhaps other pets, though I can't stand dogs) have the ability to relieve or reduce stress in people's lives.  I think I know why:  Cats are easy to please and amuse, and they always show you they like you (as long as you're nice and you feed them regularly).  When you pet a cat, it "smiles" and purrs to let you know that it's happy.  Unlike a human, it won't reach an age where being pet becomes "weird".  It won't want to spend more time with its friends or feel like you're too bossy.  Cats don't become much more mature than when you first get them.  They appreciate what you do for them and they show it.  I think the appreciation they show and the ways they show you they like you are an immediate reward for a service you're performing.  They don't ask for anything in return.  They don't dump all their problems on you.  They don't tell all your secrets to your neighbors.  You pet them; they like you.  So simple. #nature