We took the kids to the Raleigh Christmas parade this morning. It was in the 20s with a steady wind, and we were in the shade at the corner of Fayetteville and Hargett. Even so, we all had a great time watching all the bands and floats go by.
We also took the opportunity to ride the bus to and from the parade. It was super easy, and though the bus only runs hourly on weekends we spent the extra time hanging out in Marbles. I think the kids enjoyed the bus ride as much as the parade itself.
I’ve been so busy job hunting (and making my rounds of civic meetings) that I forgot to post about Monday’s CAC presentation by Raleigh police chief Harry Dolan.
Chief Dolan spoke about the state of crime in the city and what needs to be done to reduce it. He stressed again and again that it begins with the parents and the community, not the police, and I fully agree. It was easy to tell that while the chief would rather not put kids behind bars, until someone close to these kids can show them a better way he’ll keep locking them up. But he’d be much happier if these kids had mentors.
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One thing I’ve always liked about Monster.Com‘s user interface is that the button you click on when you fill out a form says “get results” rather than the word “submit,” “Get results” is far more positive than “submit.” Nearly everyone would rather get results than simply submit. I know I would. Now if Monster could only scrub their user interface of all those sneaky University of Arizona signup pages they’d be all set.
On a related note, one thing I hate about submitting my resume to sites like Monster and CareerBuilder is all of the solicitations I get from pyramid scheme-ish “business opportunities” or “affiliate marketing programs.” I’ve already sent three of them to the bit bucket this week.
Sheesh. Save the scams for the suckers, please!
One thing about being at home during the day is that I can dance and belt out songs without an audience.
Tuesday morning’s hard freeze finally did in my tomato plants once and for all. It was a remarkable run, I’ve got to admit, for plants that got stuck in the ground much later in the spring than they should’ve.
I’m already planning a new and improved garden for spring (paycheck-permitting, ‘natch).
Aaron Parks posted an update over the weekend about jazz musician Mark Turner’s progress in healing from his recent finger injuries:
Hi everyone,
I know many of you have been asking for more news about Mark’s condition. Out of respect for the privacy of him and his family during this difficult time, I’ve been a bit reluctant to make any more posts about it. Also, there’s a lot of people who have known him for much longer than me and would probably be better chosen for the job of keeping people informed. At this point, though, it seems that this blog has become the primary source for information about what happened, and therefore, it’s the place many people are coming to for information about ways that they can help. It’s with this in mind that I’m writing this post tonight.
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Yesterday, I found there is definite interest in an Asterisk project I’ve been mulling for a while, related to the annoying fake caller id telemarketing calls I’ve been getting. There’s a need to be filled and I have a great solution. Its just a matter of figuring out a revenue model for it.
Sometimes a break from a regular job can offer a refreshing change in perspective.
I read today with concern that MT.Net friend and Garner mayor Ronnie Williams has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.
I wish him well with his treatment.
Kelly and I danced with glee when we discovered this morning that Wake County School System’s proposed reassignment will have the kids going to nearby Enloe High School rather than across town to Leesville High. Its nothing against Leesville itself, of course. Its just that the distance to travel to and from Leeesville would cut considerably into the kids’ free time.
Enloe is an award-winning high school roughly a mile away. It is ranked by Newsweek as one of the top 100 high schools in the country. And Ligon Middle School is a fantastic school as well. We’re all very excited about the proposed changes.
If all that wasn’t enough to cheer about, the reassignment webserver runs Linux! Too cool.
Alaska Senator Ted Stevens (R-felon) has lost his reelection campaign to Anchorage mayor Mark Begich. Maybe Sen. Stevens can use his newfound free time to learn about the Internet, which he supposedly regulated as a member of the Senate Commerce Committee.
Bonus link: I love it that Google Chrome has a “Tubes” Easter egg built in.
