I ran across a link in my Twitter feed to an article — which unfortunately is no longer available — describing Apple’s attempts to modify Siri, its voice-activated iOS “personal assistant” application, to provide more helpful feedback for people searching for suicide-related information. With an update to phones running iOS 6 and iOS 7, Siri… Continue reading Google’s Mixed Message Suicide Search Results
Category: Society & Culture
Credit Jarred
They say there’s no honor among thieves, but what about among designers?
Inauguration Day 2009: Revisited
A rare political post which makes the point that I’m not perceptive enough to write political posts.
Betsy Andreu: My New Heroine
At the time of this writing, if you type “Betsy” into the Google search bar, “Betsy Andreu” comes up as the second suggested phrase, behind only Betsey Johnson, which makes no sense at all because the two names are spelled differently, and I would expect that Big Brother would be well aware that I couldn’t… Continue reading Betsy Andreu: My New Heroine
Two Things: Lance / Missy
Lance Armstrong: Self-inflicted irrelevance I’m still trying to decide how I feel about Lance Armstrong now that he’s [apparently] coming clean – more or less, and no pun intended – about his use of PEDs during his cycling career. I’ve been a fan since his early days in the sport, and felt an inordinate amount… Continue reading Two Things: Lance / Missy
Christmas Decorations 2012
In an unprecedented and probably unrepeatable display of common sense, I decided to no longer venture onto the roof to hang Christmas lights. I’m going to use a pogo stick. OK, just kidding. About the pogo stick, not the roof climbing. I feel confident that I could continue to walk around on the roof, untethered,… Continue reading Christmas Decorations 2012
Make Your Yard Art a TV Star!
One of the fun things about blogging is that you never know who’s going to show up. This email appeared in my inbox earlier this week: Hi Eric… Let me start by congratulating you the ‘Fire Ant Gazette’…I’ve been enjoying not only the pics, but your descriptions are quite comical…I really enjoy your writing style. … Continue reading Make Your Yard Art a TV Star!
Water Musings
On Sunday, the most stringent water use restrictions in memory will take effect in Midland. The city’s “Drought Contingency Plan” is detailed here under the heading of “Stage 2 – Moderate Water Shortage Conditions.” Earlier this week we received a letter from the city showing how our monthly water bill will increase if we use… Continue reading Water Musings
A Trip to the Bookstore
Note: What follows is an entirely accurate account. It’s not my fault if “accurate” equates to “boring.” We went out for dinner tonight, not wanting to be the only people in Midland who didn’t do so. If there’s a restaurant in our fair city that’s not making money, it’s because the owners want a tax… Continue reading A Trip to the Bookstore
A Cultural Historical Moment
I’m no historian, but the following scene may have been a turning moment in culture. This unassuming scene comes at approximately 8:12 into the movie Heathers, a dark comedy starring Winona Ryder and Christian Slater, filmed in 1988. One second earlier, this group of obvious high school losers was referred to by a female character… Continue reading A Cultural Historical Moment