Nerd score...

It's certainly obvious how to game this thing but an honest evaluation led to:




I'm nerdier than I thought...

Lemonade... That cool refreshing drink...

After the fast last week, I didn't think I'd be hot for lemonade anytime soon; however, for some reason I had the urge for a glass of real lemonade today. I'd never made 'real' lemonade before but since I have some leftover lemons, I went ahead and took a tall glass (probably a little more than 20 fl. oz.) and put the juice from a good sized lemon in there, filled it with cold water and added a heaping teaspoon of suger. Stirred. Drank. Yeow! Sour. Ok, more sugar. Two more heaping teaspoons full. Stir for a few minutes to dissolve that much sugar into cold water. Taste. Delicious!

My daughter Kate wandered over and asked for a taste and since it was still really tart even though it was also sweet - I figured she'd make a face like 'Daddy you should not have given me that' but instead she started chugging. She then suggested that I help her (by picking her up and standing her on the kitchen counter) obtain the drinking cup of her choice and she would allow me to fill it with lemonade for her. She's very thoughtful that way. 5 minutes later, she was back for more lemonade. So, I had a little bit of tasty tasty lemonade today, and Kate had the rest.

Java JRE, IE8, and 64-bit systems...

I just put Windows 7 Ultimate on my HP QuadCore laptop, and after downloading and installing the latest 64-bit JRE from SUN, I found that it didn't appear to actually install properly. Applets wouldn't load, but java showed up through the command line. So, I went to 'manage add-ons' in IE8, and saw only 1 of the usual 2 SUN plug-ins. I figured I'd just had a screwy install, so I removed, re-downloaded (you never know) and re-installed. Bang, same problem.

At this point, I usually slow down and ensure I'm not being a complete idiot about something and I carefully evaluate my actions. Yes, this is Windows 7 Ultimate x64, yes I downloaded the x64 JRE 6, update 17. Ok, time to google. People having problems with this? After sifting through the inevitable mountains of detritus trying to find a nugget of useful information (should I have used Bing? ;)) I ran across a tiny little comment in forum about 17 posts down saying "Make sure it's IE8 x64 you're using..." Click. No way, I thought. I could understand and appreciate why Microsoft would install two versions of IE8 on an x64 system, but I figured there's no freakin' way the default IE to be used would be the 32-bit version, right? Wrong.

Turns out that that the default IE8 that shows up 'pinned' to the taskbar is the 32-bit version. Jerkoffs... So, 30 seconds later I had both added a quick launch toolbar to the tastbar (some idiot decided to remove this from Windows 7) and replaced 'IE8' with 'IE8 (x64).' Bingo applets showed up.

'Bad image exception" running C# code on Windows 7

We just ran into this problem with one of our tools when someone ran a C# application on Windows 7 (although it isn't supported just yet on that platform.) Turns out that the issue was related to a 64-bit Windows 7 .NET installation loading and referencing 32-bit modules. If everything used in the application was 32-bit, it would be fine; but, you can't mix and match. Since this application makes use of modules hosted by the operating system, the 64-bit modules load and the 32-bit application image tries to map the 64-bit image for usage. BLAM...

This article describes the problem:

http://www.gcn.com/Articles/2009/07/09/5-Tips-for-Developing-with-64-Bit-Windows.aspx

Looks like a recompilation is due... Great, I just love maintaining two images and builds for the same tool.

Who doesn't miss Gary Larson?

Some of the funniest things I've ever seen came from his hands... Someone sent me this picture today and I thought I'd share it.

Lemonade Fast - Day #5

It's over! A lot of lemons, maples syrup, distilled water, and 10 pounds later...

This fast is really boring, but quite effective especially if you need to drop weight quickly for some reason (but I don't think this is a very wise way to lose weight as it very likely stresses your body unnecessarily.)

I didn't do this fast for dieting purposes but I must say that compared to diets I've used in the past, this approach had no headaches, and after the first day the hunger wasn't too bad. It cleans you out too :).

Jake informed me that he had some watered down oatmeal this morning and his stomach is unsure as to how to react; so, I'll wait 'til later this afternoon to probably introduce solids again.

I think a smoking hot Lamb Vindalo is probably not a good choice. Maybe a bean burrito with nothing else in it.

Let's see how much weight comes back on over the next two days.

Lemonade Fast - Day #4

Okay, day four has arrived.

Not unusually tired. Have been sleeping really well since the fast started. No headaches to report. Hunger is a little stronger, but not too bad. Salt water is becoming more revolting instead of less (I presumed it would get easier.)
So...

Salt water flush - check.
Salt water effectiveness - check.
Ability to smell the neighbors two houses over cooking bacon when I took the dogs out this morning - check.
Actual string of drool slipping temporarily unnoticed from my mouth when sitting with the kids at dinner tonight - check.
Sheer and utter boredom with this fast - check...

God/Allah/YHWH - be praised, Jake has informed me that he was very tired today and may make tomorrow his last day on the fast. I will, of course, remain on the fast approximately 8 seconds longer and then dive headfirst into the refridgerator. Should Jake change his mind, I may, instead, cry myself to sleep tomorrow night dreaming of a Johnny's double cheese/double pepperoni. Shit. I just made drool fall out of my mouth and onto my desk.

Pray with me people that Jake remains stout of heart in his quest to end the fast tomorrow.