Technology & MSG

On August 9th, WTOP announced a casting call for extras to take part in the shooting of Transformers 3. There was special interest in those with cars and precision driving experience. Nifty.
On August 10th, it was announced that quite a bit of the planned D.C. shoots were denied by the National Park Service. Not horribly [...]

Read Full Post »

I find the election signs that are emerging from street corners and lawns up and down the coast to be incredibly tacky, especially when they disrupt an otherwise pristine landscape. They seem to scream “vote for me, because I don’t give a shit how this neighborhood looks!”
I’d make it a personal mission not to vote [...]

Read Full Post »

Inspired by two Flickr groups, I decided to document my everyday carry. That is, the items that I carry with me on a daily basis.

Nothing really fancy here.
I’ve got the usual ring of keys to various houses, offices, and vehicles, most of which are infrequently used. There’s a ten-year-old wallet, filled with a modest amount [...]

Read Full Post »

Not just companies and countries, but our individual lifestyles as well.
The world has become an increasingly interwoven place, and today, whether you are a company or a country, your threats and opportunities increasingly derive from who you are connected to.
– Thomas Friedman, The Lexus and the Olive Tree

Read Full Post »

I find child prodigies to be enigmatic. Adora Svitak is no exception. Though perhaps smarter than most of the child (and perhaps adult) population, I found her talk from TED entitled What Adults Can Learn from Kids to be insightful and fun.
Sometimes all it takes is a really sharp individual to make people think about [...]

Read Full Post »

I’m not usually a fan of bottled water. It’s pricey. You end up with lots of bottles. But sometimes, it’s the only thing going.
Over the weekend, I stopped into Trader Joe’s for lunch. I grabbed a pre-made wrap and was looking for something to drink, when I discovered the following: a half-liter bottle of spring [...]

Read Full Post »

When you accept an offer of employment, be cautious when it comes to your employment contract. Assuming that you’ve read it, understood it, were fine with its terms, and signed it, make sure you get a copy of it.
Once you sign the official copies, they’ll likely disappear into the vacuum that is HR. I envision [...]

Read Full Post »

After it was announced that consular fees would be rising effective July 13th, I decided that it was time to renew my passport. It was due to expire later in the month anyway, so I figured I’d take care of it and save $35 in the process.
I went to Penn Camera in Laurel to have [...]

Read Full Post »

Credit to Rolling Stone, their renewal notices are more amusing than most.
This is the last letter you’ll receive from us, despite our best efforts over the past few months to keep our relationship alive.
What went wrong?
Some time ago, you gave us a few dollars you would have otherwise squandered on who-knows-what, and believe us we [...]

Read Full Post »

After a year with Amazon Prime, I’m renewing my membership. The convenience and savings — both time and money — make it more than worthwhile.
In the past year, I placed 23 distinct orders with Amazon that weren’t covered as part of my free trial to Prime. Each of the orders contained at least one item, [...]

Read Full Post »