At least someone gets it

I think that the following blog posting summarizes the failings of the TSA. As I have been saying for years, the "security" procedures implemented by the TSA are mere window dressing, and serve no legitimate security purpose. I think the following quote highlights the current sad state of affairs, in reference to the Registered Traveler program:

As cynical as George Orwell ever was, I doubt he imagined the idea of citizens offering up money for their own subjugation.

Home at last!

The Comcast technician showed up this morning, and started testing my cable. After a significant amount of work (including replacing one of the cable runs), he tested the signal at the main distribution point. The signal strength was lousy, and was affecting the whole building. As it turned out, several of my neighbors had also placed trouble calls with Comcast, and several Comcast technicians descended upon our neighborhood. I left before the outside technicians had finished repairing

My drive up from Virginia back to Michigan was fairly uneventful, and I made decent time. With minimal stops, I made it back to Ann Arbor in eight and a half hours. As I was rather late getting back to Ann Arbor, both Meijer's and Kroger's were closed. Thankfully, Walgreens was still open, so I was able to pick up some groceries (such as they were) so that I would have food for Christmas.

I hope everyone has a completely wonderful Christmas!

Going nowhere fast

Under my original plan, I was supposed to be on the road at the moment, driving home to Ann Arbor. Unfortunately, due to the unreliable and fickle nature of Comcast, I am stuck in Virginia until Monday afternoon. My business cable internet service went out on Thursday night. Comcast originally scheduled a technician for today, but later cancelled the appointment because their "commercial" technicians are only available during the week. And since I can't afford to have my servers offline for two weeks during this crucial end-of-year financial close-out period, I am stuck here until Monday - assuming that Comcast actually bothers to show up.

Of course, the irony of this situation was that I was planning on setting up a backup server in Ann Arbor over the holidays, so that I could switch over services in case of a network outage. Isn't life grand?

Sunday randomness

Yesterday was a pretty awesome day. I went hiking at Great Falls (on the Maryland side) with a friend, and had a completely fun time. The Billy Goat Trail was a little wet from melting snow, but otherwise, the conditions were fine.


A cool looking tree along the C&O Canal
Today was a cold, dreary, and rainy day, and it was one of those days when I just wanted to hibernate. Nevertheless, I forced myself to get out of the house. I took care of some errands, including a trip to REI. Later this afternoon, I went out for a run. I took my usual loop (out to Iwo Jima Memorial, then down to the Mt. Vernon Trail, and back up via the Custis Trail) for a total of four miles. I'm not a huge fan of running amidst traffic, urban streets, and planes on approach to National. I really miss the Gallup Park Trail and the Arb in Ann Arbor. However, I haven't been out running in a little while, so it was good to hit the pavement again.

Hatching December

I have been dealing with a cold this week, and while it hasn't been too bad, I have been extremely tired all week. So last night, I decided not to set my alarm and sleep in, in the hopes of getting rid of it. To my complete surprise, I woke up at one in the afternoon. I guess I must have really needed the rest. The downside was that it made for a rather short day.

I went out to Great Falls for a little bit this afternoon to take some pictures. I was hoping to catch some pictures of the herons as twilight set in. However, the early sunset (4:47pm) meant that it wasn't too long before it was dark, and there was no sign of the herons. So I played around with taking some pictures of the river at night.


Potomac River at night