Piling on the sugar

One of my pet peeves is the habit food companies have of piling on the sweeteners. Some take the position that anything they sell can be made better with a double-dose of high fructose corn syrup. What results is a society with an obesity epidemic.

It doesn’t have to be that way, though. Take yogurt, for example. We’ve long been looking to buy a brand with less sweetener added. What we’ve found is it’s harder than you think.

You’d think that by buying brand-name food, or food that touts its health benefits most prominently, you’d be picking the healthiest, right? Wrong. Let’s take a look at three different yogurt brands in our refrigerator right now:
Continue reading →

Chris Tedesco arrested for rape

Chris Tedesco

Chris Tedesco of Garner was arrested Saturday on charges of second-degree rape, among other very serious charges:

KIDNAPPING 1ST DEGREE 14-39
SEX OFFENSE 2ND DEGREE 14-27.5 A
RAPE 2ND DEGREE 14-27.3 A
BREAKING AND ENTERING 14-54 (F)
ASSAULT W/DEADLY WEAPON 14-33

Chris Tedesco is the younger brother of Wake School Board member John Tedesco.

I don’t know what got into this guy but judging by the charges it looks like he’s got some serious anger-management issues. I hope the victim is okay.

A little bird told me

It’s been said that the newsroom at the News and Observer has been so quiet lately that one can hear a bird chirp. That’s no surprise to anyone who works there because the latest addition to the newsroom is a bird.

Sources say a bird somehow found its way into the N&O’s cavernous press room and has spent the past few weeks flying around in a panic. The desperate bird has apparently rebuffed all efforts of N&O staffers to rescue it.

N&O staffers might be better off convincing the bird that calling a large, air-conditioned room home might not be so bad now that our outdoor temperatures are routinely topping 100 degrees!

Peace College to Become William Peace University

More of the public domain pictures I took of Raleigh landmarks for Wikipedia are turning up in the wild. Today, my photograph of Peace College was used to illustrate a story in Raleigh Downtowner magazine.

Raleigh — The Peace College Board of Trustees announced today that Peace College plans to become William Peace University.

“Becoming William Peace University reflects our growth as an institution and will deepen and broaden our ability to help our students succeed,” said Beth Cherry, Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees and a Peace alumna. “This will be such a wonderful opportunity for our students.”

via Peace College to Become William Peace University.

Google Maps car

I just spotted the Google Maps camera car driving through our neighborhood. Fortunately I had my camera ready and snapped a dozen photos of it as I stood in my driveway.

I can’t wait to see the new Google Maps imagery with this crazy old bald guy standing behind a bush with a camera!

Update 7 July 2012: Got it!

Compelling photograph

N&O photograph by Takaai Iwabu

I was sad to read in yesterday’s News and Observer about a fire at the Gorman Crossing apartment complex in Raleigh. Accompanying the story was a compelling photograph of one of the affected residents, Connie Starkey, being comforted by her father, Fred Starkey.

Connie’s grief screams out of the photo. Her face told me all I needed to know about what happened there – and how I should feel about it. Everyone who sees this photograph knows what this woman was feeling at that very instant. It’s a powerful image.

N&O photographer Takaaki Iwabu captured a masterful photograph. I believe it’s the best photograph I’ve seen in the News and Observer in months, if not years. It’s outstanding photojournalism.

As for Connie, I hope she’s able to recover from this tragedy.

Update 22 July: While Connie lost all of her possessions in the fire, at least her dog and one of her two cats survived. Hooray! See the NCSU Technician’s excellent photos of the efforts to save Starkey’s cat, Sissy.

Update 2: WTVD’s Anthony Wilson spoke with Connie a day after the fire.

Earthlink’s email blocked by Hotmail?

It looks like I’m not the only one who’s been going to battle against Microsoft Hotmail’s anti-spam measures. Now Hotmail is rejecting emails from Earthlink accounts. We’ve seen our emails sent there being bounced for the past few days. Here’s the message:

[redacted]@hotmail.com
SMTP error from remote mailer after MAIL FROM:<[redacted]@[redacted]>
SIZE=3777:
host mx4.hotmail.com [65.55.92.184]: 550 SC-001 (SNT0-MC4-F19)
Unfortunately, messages from 207.69.195.66 weren’t sent. Please contact your
Internet service provider since part of their network is on our block list.
You can also refer your provider to
http://mail.live.com/mail/troubleshooting.aspx#errors.

Like many ISPs, Earthlink has its own anti-spam measures. I’ve not found anything on Earthlink’s website that explains the current Hotmail block, however.

How Much Do Music Artists Earn Online?

Informative look at music industry math.

Recently, the UK government passed The Digital Economy Act which included many, perhaps draconian, measures to combat online music piracy including withdrawing broadband access for persistent pirates. Much was proclaimed about how these new laws would protect musicians and artists revenue and livelihoods. But how much money do musicians really get paid in this new digital marketplace?

via How Much Do Music Artists Earn Online?.

Be on the lookout for this scooter

My friend Jason had his scooter stolen from his front yard this week. It’s a red, 150cc-size Q-Link Achilles brand and is a 2007 model. Jason says he’s never seen another one like it in town.

If you happen to see this scooter around Raleigh, call 911.

Update 17 Jul: Scooter found and returned. Thanks, RPD!

Massey Energy faked mine safety data

For those of you who don’t see the value of government regulation, read this. Some companies will happily trade safety for profits.

When you “let the market decide,” good people die.

The owner of the West Virginia coal mine where an explosion killed 29 men last year kept two sets of books on safety conditions – an accurate one for itself and a sanitized one for the government, federal regulators said Wednesday.

Managers at Massey Energy pressured workers at the Upper Big Branch mine to omit safety problems from the official set of reports, said Mine Safety and Health Administration official Kevin Stricklin. Workers told investigators that the company wanted to avoid scrutiny from inspectors and keep coal production running smoothly.

via Massey Energy faked mine safety data, feds say.