I'm getting a bit of a head start on things for ACME at RCFM.

I'm looking for suggestions of what ACME should deliver at RCFM 7 (2009), and who things should be delivered to.

( Advise ACME  )

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Current Mood: curious

I'm getting a bit of a head start on things for ACME at Penguicon.

I'm looking for suggestions of what ACME should deliver at Penguicon 7 (2009), and who things should be delivered to.

( Advise ACME  )

NOTE: Friends replies are NOT screened and will be visible.

Current Mood: curious

I'm getting a bit of a head start on things for ACME at MFF. I'll have a couple other ACME polls for Penguicon and RCFM later this month.

I'm looking for suggestions of what ACME should deliver at MFF this year, and who things should be delivered to.

( Advise ACME )

NOTE: Friends replies are NOT screened and will be visible.

Current Mood: curious

At almost every convention at which Orvan has done ACME deliveries, he has delivered an OPS Survival Kit.

This started as a joke. And it was meant as only a joke, but it's turned out more than once that this joke was surprisingly practical. If it was just a joke, I'd probably retire the bit as "it's been done" and part of good comedy is not running the same gag into the ground through excess repetition. Since it has moved from humor to practicality, I have different concerns. One is that I really hope this whole thing really does become redundant and that folks working Ops and such at a convention manage to be properly prepared for the things this sort of kit covers. It's not that I want to bail out of it. It's that I would rather people be prepared. If they start depending on this showing up, it'll be a bit awkward if something happens and I (and therefore Orvan) can't make it, and this doesn't show up. Not a disaster, but it'll be one more nuisance for them then.

Beyond that, there is the matter of what items belong in the kit. I think I have the basics covered, but I'm not the one using the kit. For all I know there is something there I simply should not bother with. Or worse, there is a blatant omission of "D'oh!" proportions that would be trivial to take care of.

Some of these items have been common to every OPS/REGS Survival Kit. Others have only been in some and not in others due to ready availability (These are generally dollar store specials - ACME is cheap.) or to differences in the nature of a convention. For example, including caffeine in something going to Penguicon seems horribly redundant.

Aspirin
Ibuprofen
Acetaminophen (Tylenol)
Naproxen (Aleve)
Antacid
Pepto or equivalent
Throat drops
Bandages / mini first-aid kit
Handi-wipes
Tissues
Caffeine
Candy
Duc{k,t} tape

Is anything there that should not be? Anything that makes you think, "What the blazes is that there for?" Or that, after a convention, has not been opened at all? The various analgesics will stay as people have different preferences and tolerances, and even if one kind goes unused at convention X, I expect it will be used at convention Y.

Is anything obviously missing? Any item where you reach for the kit, look through it, and wonder why that thing isn't there?

I'd especially like to hear from anyone who worked Ops/Regs at a con and made use of one of these survival kits.

Current Mood: curious

Every year that the Siouxland Renaissance Festival has taken place, jmaynard and I have attended it. We arrive Friday afternoon, check in to a hotel, and then go out for supper. The past several years we've gone out to supper with some folks we know who are also going to the RenFest. We also tend to wind up going out with some folks on Saturday and Sunday, but that's usually arranged at the Festival.

I know a good many folks who will be there will be occupied with final site set-up and performer/vendor/volunteer orientation sorts of things on Friday. Is anyone reading this going? And will be free for supper Friday evening?

Current Mood: curious

brace_bear takes a lot of con photos and puts them up on the web so anyone could view them. Or used to, and still wants to. I recall there was some issue with his previous image host (not sure who it was, it might well have been flickr but I can't say for sure) so he looked around and found... phanfare.

Phanfare screams "we want to spam you" at me. Why? You need to have an account to even look around. You need to be "friended" to look at anything. It's as if they are trying force a community site. Actually, they are. Recall anyone else that did a force-build of a community and succeeded? Me neither.

That in their explanation they refer to "third party e-mail marketing" by that euphemism scares me. Why not call spam what it is? It's spam. This suggests to me at least one of two things: They really don't understand how the net works. They are going to spamming while claiming "spamming is that which we do not do."

The big touting of having being both Windows and Mac gimmicks also amuses me in the wrong way. "We have both kinds of music, Country and Western!"

So... those who have had Phanfare accounts for a while: Have they kept their word? Are they merely clueless, or are they evil?

Current Mood: suspicious

I've been wanting something to drink that doesn't seem to exist. I expect it does, but I'm just not aware or haven't been recalling it.

When it's cold, it's nice to have something warm or hot. This is covered by coffee, tea, cider, and hot chocolate. When it's warm or hot, something cool or cold is nice. This is covered by fruit juices, soft drinks, milk, iced tea (and now iced coffee), and ice-water. Also, beer and wine are served at least somewhat chilled.

But the only thing I can think of that is served at or around room temperature is hard liquor. And what I want is something that is neither hot nor cold, and is not intoxicating. So far all I can come up with is letting some water, without any ice, stand and warm up for a while. It's not bad. A little lemon or lime juice helps. Water is probably the best thing I can drink: no caffeine, no alcohol, no sugar, no artificial sweeteners, no calories. So I don't really mind that other than the delay of letting it come up to temperature.

But this does have me wondering, are there any drinks (other than hard liquors) that are served at, and considered good at, room temperature?

Current Mood: thirsty

Most Sundays jmaynard and I go out for breakfast and one fellow who works at the restaurant takes his family to Disney World every year This morning I just happened to ask him, "What's up, Doc?" and he pointed out that was a Warner Bros. thing and he was more a Disney type. Thinking the incident over a bit, a question came to me: Is there any popular phrase that makes Disney or a Disney character immediately come to mind?

For Warner Brothers there are a few phrases: "What's up, Doc?" "Th-th-that's all, folks!" "Of course you know, this means war." and even "I tawt I taw a puddy-tat. I did. I did taw a puddy-tat!"

But all I can think of for Disney are musical items such as, "When You Wish Upon A Star" or the derogatory usage of Mickey Mouse to describe a (I am trying not to say 'goofy') screwy system.

Am I overlooking something? Is there some character quotation that is fairly common that instantly brings a Disney character to mind?

Current Mood: curious

I've been getting things together for ACME deliveries at Penguicon in April and RCFM is only a month or so after that. That means I need ACME delivery ideas for RCFM. Both who to deliver something to, what to deliver to them. I don't know everyone well enough to work it all out by myself, so I'm asking for some help.

( Delivery guidelines )

In keeping with #5, replies to this post are all screened so only I will see all of them.

Who can be a recipient? Anybody! This isn't just for Guests of Honor and staffers. If it's just someone you know will be there and have an idea for what to send them, that will do nicely. I probably won't use every idea, just so I have some time for myself, but more ideas are better than fewer.

Generic ideas (e.g. "Chew toys for canines.") are certainly useful and I do not want to discourage those. But the main interest is to try to get things specific to a person.

Thank you for any suggestions.

Current Mood: curious

I have a need, or at least a use, for a picture of a jar[1] of Folgers. I do not have a jar of Folgers or I'd just take the picture myself. I also don't have any use for Folgers beyond the image[2], so it doesn't make sense for me to buy a jar if I can avoid it. The image is for the ACME Delivery web site. I am asking for photo if anyone is able and willing to take such as I want to be sure I won't have any copyright issues. That's why just snagging something that Google Images comes up with is out. The photographer will be properly credited. I can add such text to the image since I'll be editing it anyway, as I'll probably need to crop and re-size it.

Anyone have the ability and the interest?

jmaynard

Current Mood: curious

I haven't made up my mind for sure what to do about the 2009 ACME Calendar but I have decided I ought to be building up a collection of Orvan photos that could be used for a Calendar.

These would have to be public places, unless an arrangement with the property owner(s) could be had for access to non-public locations. I figure places like public parks and historical markers or such are probably about the best. But a scenic roadway or just a good spot downtown could work too. Note that places like malls are private and would need to be negotiated, and there is apt to be concern about wear a "mask" since my face will not be visible.

The ideal locations would be in southern Minnesota (including the Twin Cities), the Sioux Falls area, northern or central Wisconsin and perhaps Des Moines. This is just "places I can drive to" and am likely to either have someone with me or can find someone there to take the pictures and help with local navigation.

This is the season for Winter scenes (though I'd rather not have Orvan's feet in the snow - I want to keep him dry) but I can go places in other seasons as well.

It's far better to have too many suggestions and extra photos than to be wondering how to fill gaps. So, suggest away!

Current Mood: curious

While it's still a few months until Penguicon it doesn't hurt to get an early start to things. It's much easier to find things when it's not a last-minute search.

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Current Mood: curious

It's been known for a while that some terms listed as interests on LiveJournal cannot be searched for using LiveJournal's own search system. Tonight the LiveJournal folks posted a bit about that, but frustratingly didn't really say anything other than admit that the blocking existed and that the blocking system would be tweaked to be more specific and less likely to block untargeted terms. Naturally, they were called on this and asked what the reason for the blocking was. The responses have been "We can't say." or "We can't answer those questions right now."

I haven't heard of this happening with any other journaling site, and I suspect if it did that news that such blocking was happening at multiple sites would spread rapidly. It'd likely hit Slashdot and Fark pretty fast. So, as that has not happened, it seems to be LiveJournal specific. If it was simply LJ policy, they could talk about - they might not want to, but they could. So, suppose they're actually being truthful when they say they can't give details. What could explain that?

The only thing I can come up with, and I admit this pure speculation on my part, is some sort of settlement (threatened lawsuit based on "hate speech" perhaps?) that had provisions that LiveJournal would have to block some terms, and that LiveJournal could not reveal the instigators of the blocking.

Assuming there is a genuine reason for the blocking, and that LiveJournal truly cannot talk about it, is there any other explanation?

Current Mood: curious

Arriving in today's mail was a set of Orvan icons from Jim Groat. That was good, as was discovering that in one update or another, PCLinuxOS is now capable of dealing with a flatbed scanner so I could scan the icons.

I had asked for three different moods or emotions and had specified two of them well. The puzzled or bewildered icon is obvious, with Orvan scratching his head. The anger/angry icon is obvious as well. But this one I'm not really sure about. It's certainly a good icon, I just don't know quite how to describe it.

So I ask you. What mood or emotion does that image convey? Or, how would you label that icon?

Current Mood: curious

I have the option set on LJ to send me copies of followups to my posts and comments. I do this mainly so I am aware of new comments to older posts and also so if someone not on my friends list comments it won't sit just too long waiting for me to make it visible if it deserves to be. Recently I've noticed a comment to a post of mine didn't get emailed to me. A little while ago I also found that one person's followups to my comments didn't get emailed. This bothers me. I set things to be informed and either LJ's code has a bug (and LJ wasn't being otherwise flaky that I could tell either time) or else it's possible for someone to override my choices about getting informed of replies, which seems to be a Very Bad Idea. If I don't get any email commentary about a followup, it's possible I'll miss it entirely if it's to something that isn't either very recent or so interesting I keep going back to it.

Has anyone noticed this going? Is this something that some consider a feature, "stealth" commenting?

[Yes, some have. LJ was just glitchy.]

Current Mood: irritated
Current Music: My Back Yard - Harry Young

On the cover of Looney Tunes for April 2005 is a mobile little red schoolhouse labelled "P.S. 123." Now I am wondering what places have numbered, rather than named (Lincoln, Franklin, etc.) schools. Looking around with Google, I've not found anything really definitive. I know New York City has numbered schools, but does anywhere else?

Current Mood: curious
Current Music: Cosmic Radio Show - The Chromatics

"The combination "ough" can be pronounced in nine different ways.
The following sentence contains them all: A rough-coated, dough-faced, thoughtful ploughman strode through the streets of Scarborough; after falling into a slough, he coughed and hiccoughed."

But I must be missing something or not speaking in the required dialect. I only count eight different pronunciations:

1. rough - uff
2. dough - oh
3. thought - aw
4. plough - ow
5. through - oo
6. Scarborough -ah/uh
7. slough - oo (uff?)
8. cough - off
9. hiccough - up

So, what am I missing, or is the quoted text wrong? For the record my dialect would be either (Northern) Midwest or maybe Great Lakes if that is at all helpful in this.

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Current Mood: curious

So.. what's a Klondike bar ever done for you?

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Current Mood: silly

There's likely a simple, though maybe not easy, answer that I've just plain missed. One of the things I've wondered about is what could be called the bootstrap problem. How can crude tools be used to make less crude tools?

That is, you start with sticks and stones, and you eventually end up with precision machined parts accurate to tolerances that may be too small to see. It can be done. That much is plain since humanity did it. But although it's been proven possible, it seems counter-intuitive. It requires crude things to make finer things, repeatedly.

A devastated, but once advanced, civilization should in theory be able to recover faster than it built itself up the first time - if it permits itself that rebuilding. What's needed to do this? A good many things are only "obvious" after the fact. By the time a civilization understands something well enough to bring it to perfection, that civilization has likely discovered something else that even though imperfect is so much better that the first thing is rendered obsolete. But the knowledge of earlier technologies isn't useless - if nothing else, it'd be useful to rebuild fast and skip all the fiddling around between advances.

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Current Mood: pensive

If I've been naughty and I tell Santa Claus I want a lump of coal for Christmas, what does he do?

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Current Mood: silly