Adblock Jun 26, 2007
It's been a while since I tried using Adblock for Firefox, and I can't remember why I stopped.  In the past day, this plugin has made my life about 35% better (figure based on estimates).  Pop-up blocking used to be all the rage, but most newer browsers have that built-in.  Yet for some reason, certain pop-ups still find their way through, and it really gets to me.  Sites like Snopes still employ this archaic and annoying method of advertising, and I got to the point where I was looking for alternative sites that didn't get on my nerves.  But with Adblock, you can just block all the junk you don't want to see.  No more pop-ups from casalemedia.com or tribalfusion.com.  No more ads, period.  Man I love geeks and their ability to hack things. #technology
Golf and gators (1) Jun 26, 2007
A guy almost lost his arm while trying to get his ball out of the water at a golf course in Venice, FL (via Obscure Store).  Oddly enough, my grandparents lived in the little town of Venice for 170 years (or it might've been around 25), and I played golf there a few times.  The rule on those golf courses, as with most Florida golf courses, is simple:  If your ball goes in the water, leave it.  Even if you can see it and it's only a few feet in, leave it.  You can get another ball.  You can't get another arm (actually you can, but that's not the point).  When I played, I saw several alligators sunning themselves right next to water traps.  It was cool to see such an unusual animal out in the open (unusual for a New Jerseyan), but it was also at least slightly mortifying.  Alligators are in the same category of animals as sharks, lions, bears, etc.  Things with teeth large enough and jaws powerful enough to snap your femur like a toothpick.  So when I hit my ball in the water (with me and golf, it's always a "when", not an "if"), I thought about reaching in and getting it.  My grandfather, aunt, and uncle said not to, but I said, "Look.  It's right there.  I can see it in the water."  They convinced me otherwise, and that's the main reason I'm still here today. 

The article mentioned above has a stupidly funny statistic:  "The attack was the second in 18 years".  Is that a lot?  Is that a little?  What am I supposed to think? #sports
Phone book (1) Jun 26, 2007
I find it puzzling that phone books still exist.  For around a decade now, the internet has been the method people use to find information.  Sure it's not always reliable, and you can't always find what you're looking for, but I'd be more willing to trust the internet than a book that's updated and published annually.  Then there's the whole environmental issue.  Since phone books are republished every year, the old ones will inevitably be thrown out.  What happens to all that paper?  Why can't I opt out of getting a phone book?  I can opt out of [some] other mailings, but not the one that randomly shows up in a plastic bag on my driveway every 12 months.  Detractors will point to the fact that phone books are useful for propping things up, such as kids on chairs and getting stuff from the top cabinet.  Neither are issues for me since I'm childless and tall enough to reach high things.  So please, phone book hander-outers, whoever you are, please stop giving me phone books.  I don't use them. #psychology