IPv6

So my amigo Greg Brown has been raving about the wonders of IPv6 so much that I’m sick of hearing it. Thus, I will also take the plunge into the world of Even Longer IP Addresses.

Fortunately, I’m an Earthlink cable-modem subscriber and have an extra WRT54G lying around. Earthlink’s R&D department created a special firmware for the WRT54G to turn it into an IPv6 6to4 router, instantly making one’s network addressable by IPv6. Also fortunately, Earthlink packages their WRT54G firmware with a restrictive firewall so that all of your suddenly-addressable internal hosts are not completely exposed to the Internets.

I can’t let my geek friend have all the fun, you know. After all, I’ve got my Alpha Geek reputation to uphold. So its off to the Earthlink site tonight to void another warranty and get started on the IP Addressing Of The Future.

Anniversary

Its been nine wonderful years. Happy Anniversary, my love!

My morning in federal court

Jury duty: its the obligation of every citizen in our democracy. When I got my summons to appear I knew I could find a way out of it, if that’s what I wanted. How could I consider myself a citizen, though, if I shirked this important responsibility?

After a few days of false starts the day finally came. The 8 AM start didn’t seem as early as I’d expected, though I did walk in a minute or two late. Parking for the jurors is anything but a prime spot. It was a good walk from my space to the entrance to the building. Once I got there it was relatively smooth going through security.
I put my label on my shirt, hit the button for the sixth floor, and wandered into the windowless juror assembly room, already full of jurors.
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Jury through-ty

I’ve been cut loose from jury duty. We finally marched into the courtroom around 10:15 and a group of jurors were called into the juror box for questioning. I watched from the audience as they were questioned, but that was about it.

The judge called a recess at 11:00 AM and I was free to go. I’m now excused for any jury duty for the next two years.

More details tonight. For now I’m heading into work.

Jerry duty

Jerry Seinfeld is coming to Raleigh Memorial Auditorium November 14th. While I’d love to see him, the high cost of tickets isn’t appealing. Also MT.Net does a better Seinfeld than Seinfeld.

Today I’m off to the federal courthouse. Looks like this jury duty is actually going to happen. I am a little disturbed that my reporting time is 8 AM, though. What kind of fool time is that to start anything?

Look for slim to none blogging during the days as no electronics of any kind are allowed. I think its because attorneys as a rule are deathly afraid of technology, but that’s a post for another day.

Stay classy, y’all. I’m sure I’ll have a lot more to say tonight.

9-9

This seemed appropriate today.

9-9
R.E.M.

Steady repetition is a compulsion mutually reenforced.
Now what does that mean?
Is there a just contradiction?
Nothing much.
Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord, hesitate.

Had to punch
Right on target
Twisting tongues
Gotta stripe down his back
all nine yards down her back

Give me a cup of time,
Give me a couple of pointers,
Turn to lies and conversation fear
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Jury don’ty

My scheduled jury duty has been bumped once again, I just found out. The computerized voice tells me I don’t report until Wednesday. I wonder what the deal is. I’d like to go and get it over with but this constant rescheduling is getting annoying. I’m happy to serve as long as I know roughly what to expect.

Also, the instructions tell me to leave my books, phones, laptop, etc in the car. What the heck am I supposed to do while I’m waiting? I’m worried that waiting will be Death By A Thousand Infomercials and I’ll have no avenue of escape. Certainly it makes blogging challenging, though if I can snag a paper and pen I’ll be set.

Algae as a fuel source

Long-time MT.Net reader ‘Mom” sent me a link to a company that’s breeding algae that produces lipids for fuel. According to Valcent, the company, one acre of New Mexico land could produce 20,000 gallons of oil annually. Watch the video to learn more.

My engineering mindset loves finding novel uses for everyday things. I loved Lloyd Godson’s biosphere experiment where he breathed oxygen generated by an algae tank. Generating fuel from algae seems like another great step.