June 2009

There were 50 posts published in June 2009 (this is page 2 of 5).

Neda

I watched the disturbing video today of the young Iranian student named Neda Agha Soltan being shot dead and it made me very angry. I know that many Iranians must feel the same way.

With Ayatollah Khamenei determined to stand by this election the stakes in Iran have now risen considerably. I don’t see the forces that have swept Iran this week being easily put back in the bottle. Every student in the streets of Tehran can identify with Neda, and it must now be perfectly clear to them the price they might pay if they wish to succeed.

Freedom can be theirs. The question is: how badly do they want it?

Father’s Day weekend

Wow. All of this in one weekend.

  • Friday evening: Seaboard Music featured a bluegrass band. We kept the kids up past 10 PM: a rarity for us.
  • Saturday morning/afternoon: I spend 5 hours at the Raleigh CAC retreat while the kids attend a birthday party. We later all meet up for a few hours of swimming at Ridge Road Pool.
  • Saturday evening: The family visits our neighbor’s house for their annual neighborhood party. Dozens and dozens of neighbors are there, and another bluegrass band. The kids make new friends but quickly wear out and Kelly takes them home. I visit some more before walking home around 10 PM.
  • Sunday morning/afternoon: Father’s Day! A family bike ride on the greenway, followed by lunch. We then make the trip across town to visit my parents. My aunt is visiting this week so we chatted a bit and showed off the kids.
  • Sunday evening: I grill chicken for dinner. We watch more of my Planet Earth DVDs and tuck the kids into bed.

Now its time for me to relax as this has been a high-energy weekend. Sure beats being bored!

First tomato of the season

Today we enjoyed our first home-grown tomato of the season! I was surprised to water the plants this morning and find a ripe tomato there but there it was. It was actually already on the plant when I got it from the Executive Mansion by way of an Oakwood neighbor, so at least some of the home in the home-grown part is the governor’s home.

As per family tradition, we sliced it up so that each family member got a piece and enjoyed it with dinner. Now I already can’t wait for more!

Hot

It’s pretty dang hot today, with high humidity and temperatures that could top 100 degrees.

Makes me wish I had that drought flag to fly.

The Way I Are

The Way I Are
Timbaland (featuring: Keri Hilson, D.O.E.) (YouTube)

I ain’t got no money
I ain’t got no car to take you on a date
I can’t even buy you flowers
But together we can be the perfect soulmates
Talk to me girl

Oh, baby, it’s alright now, you ain’t gotta flaunt for me
If we go Dutch you can still touch my love, it’s free
We can work without the perks just you and me
Thug it out ’til we get it right
Continue reading →

Raleigh’s proposed downtown amphitheatre

My wonderfully pleasant experience at Cary’s Booth Amphitheatre this weekend got me wondering if Raleigh’s proposed downtown amphitheatre could be as good.

Probably not. It turns out that Raleigh is negotiating with Live Nation to run the facility. Live Nation is the company responsible for trashing Walnut Creek. Thus, we can reasonably expect the smaller downtown amphitheatre to be trashy but on a smaller scale.

Perhaps part of Booth Amphitheatre’s charm is that it’s preferred promoter is not Live Nation but Outback Concerts. Since Raleigh and Live Nation can’t seem to hammer out any kind of deal after a year of negotiations perhaps the city would be wise to give Outback a look.

Pinwale: The NSA’s email collection system

The New York Times has details about the NSA’s new email collection system named Pinwale which has been used to collect not only foreign email conversations but domestic ones, too.

As a former cryptographer, this seriously disturbs me. As I said before, it used to be that the folks at the NSA took their responsibility to protect Americans and their privacy seriously. It’s a shame that that’s apparently changed.

Cary’s Booth Amphitheatre: the place rocks

Sunday’s Elvis Costello show at Cary’s Koka Booth Amphitheatre was civilized in every sense of the word. We drove right up, parked so close to the gates that we didn’t need a shuttle to reach them, waltzed through the security check collecting smiles as we went, and were comfortably settled on the lawn in no time. Our spot on the lawn had a great view of the stage, the sound was perfect – not too loud or soft, and decent food could be ordered ahead for pickup. The management even sent me a customer survey afterward to see how they did.

And you know what? I gave them marks that were off the charts! The facility runs circles around the Raleigh-owned dump with the pretentious name of Time Warner Cable Music Pavilion at Walnut Creek.

Cary does amphitheatres the way they should be done. Raleigh has a new standard to beat should it ever get its proposed downtown amphitheatre started.