Google Earth shows Northern California Wildfires.
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Google earth has taken an image from Nasa and put it into google earth format so you can view it inside the application. This image pretty much describes why the sky has been orange for the last month or so.
Here is a great page from Nasa that has a compilation of photos of the 2007 fires from space:
You get what you pay for: The Dollar Tree
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The Dollar Tree really sucks. The old saying “you get what you pay for” really applies even more so here than anywhere else. I’m not going to go into a huge rant here because Im sure everyone already knows that shopping at this store for anything other than coat hangers (and even those are crappy) is a waste of a dollar. At first you walk in the store and you think 
“Wow! How can they afford to sell all this great stuff for only a dollar?” But then you start to realize that the stuff that is on sale is not the same stuff that you buy in other stores but cheaper, its actually not the same stuff at all. In fact, the merchandise at the Dollar Tree is purposely deceiving - it is made to look like popular brands that are sold in other stores. In fact the merchandise is almost exclusively made in Vietnam, and is of extremely poor quality.
As a poor college students that happens to live right across the street from the local Dollar Tree, I have been seduced into buying several products from the place. Here are a few of my real experiences:
First of all, NEVER buy food products from the Dollar Tree. Although it may look safe, you really don’t know whats in that stuff. Its my personal experience that any kind of chocolate purchased is at least 50% wax. My roomate and I once bought a bag of 100 individually wrapped bubble gums for $1. 1 cent bubble gum? Unheard of since my grandfather’s day. Well we quickly found out after reading the ingredient list that one of the chemicals used was banned in several countries including Japan and Sweden. I can’t recall the exact name of the substance right now, but if I remember I will post. All food products in the Dollar Tree are so heavily preserved I dont think they even have expiration dates, and if they do, I doubt they are ever checked.
I bought some razors. When I tried shaving with them, it hurt a lot and left a big read streak on my face. I opted instead for a rusty used Gillete that had been sitting in my toiletry kit for months instead because it was more comfortable.
My girlfriend picked up some mouthwash once. It looked almost exactly like Listerine, except it was called Listerclean or some shit. I tried it and it was tasted like sugar water. There was absolutely no alcohol in it. In fact, I wouldnt be surprised if it did more harm to my teeth than good.
Think my ideas on the dollar tree are unfair and unfounded? A quick google search comes up with loads of stories that condemn the Dollar Tree of its crappiness:
Glue Guns Recalled by Dollar Tree Stores Due to Fire, Burn and Shock Hazards
Incidents/Injuries: Dollar Tree is aware of seven incidents in which these glue guns short circuited resulting in two injuries, including electrical shock and burns.
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08175.html
I guess thats one way to make arts and crafts a little exciting.
Dollar Tree Plush Insect Toys Recalled
Dollar Tree is recalling about 300,000 plush insect toys.They contain small parts, posing a choking hazard to small children.
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/recalls04/2008/dollartree_insect.html
Choking hazard to children? Thats too far.
"...Consumer Reports' Shop Smart magazine found that certain brands of multivitamins it tested didn't contain nutrients listed on the label."
False information is ok if it only costs $1 right???
Dollar Tree to remove toys with magnets from stores
”…rare-earth magnets – which are made of strong natural materials, as a “banned hazardous product” when used in children’s toys.”
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-thu_magnet_0816aug16,0,1950083.story
Looks like Dollar Tree really has it out for the kids.
Colgate finds fake (poisonous) toothpaste in 4 states.
"Colgate said the fake toothpaste may contain diethylene glycol, which the company never uses in its toothpaste... The fake toothpaste has been found in discount stores in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland, the company said." "The chemical, also known as DEG and sometimes illegally used as an inexpensive sweetener and thickening agent, is commonly found in solvents and antifreeze."
http://money.cnn.com/2007/06/14/news/companies/colgate_poison/index.htm?postversion=2007061407
Greeeaattt.
Dollar Tree Jewelry Recalled for Lead Poisoning Hazard
“The recalled jewelry contains high levels of lead, posing a serious risk of lead poisoning and adverse health effects to young children.”
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/recalls04/2006/dollar_tree_jewelry.html
Maybe its better to keep your kids out of the Dollar Tree period.
If you think your health and well being is worth more than a dollar, don’t shop at the dollar tree. If you love buying crap you dont need just because its cheap, go right ahead.
Star Wars Episode 4 - Text Version.
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This has been floating around the web for years. I brought it up in #linuxcult, and to my surprise, some people have never heard of it. Props to anyone whop can watch the whole thing.
If the above link does not work for you,
1) press windows key + r
2) type “cmd.exe”
3) in the terminal, type “telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl”
4) enjoy
Cool Forts of El Granada
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El Granada, California always had the best mix of suburban housing mixed in with empty lots and huge groves of Eucalyptus trees. This created a great enviroment for kids to built tree houses, forts and neighborhood jumps. The town is much more devleloped now, so most of the places I remember from my youth have become new houses. Other tree forts and jumps have been destroyed purposedly in this new age of liability. However, a few of these old masterpieces survive, and a couple are still built and manage to stay alive for a while before being torn down by scared property owners and uptight dog walkers. Here are two I viseted today:
[caption id=”attachment_139” align=”aligncenter” width=”300” caption=”A smaller, closer to the ground fort with the big one just visible in the background.”]
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[caption id=”attachment_140” align=”aligncenter” width=”269” caption=”The big house up in the trees.”]
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[caption id=”attachment_141” align=”aligncenter” width=”224” caption=”Climbing Up. Much higher than it appears in the picture.”]
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[caption id=”attachment_142” align=”aligncenter” width=”300” caption=”View from inside.”]
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[caption id=”attachment_144” align=”aligncenter” width=”300” caption=”Ground fort, view from above. It has a rain cover and camo.”]
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[caption id=”attachment_145” align=”aligncenter” width=”300” caption=”Nice place to chill.”]
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[caption id=”attachment_143” align=”aligncenter” width=”224” caption=”One of the exits/entrances to the ground fort.”]
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How to Boost Wifi Signal With Tinfoil and Paper.
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Just like any other good nerd, I started on a new project a few days ago. I wanted to put an old computer in with the house’s stereo equipment to act as a jukebox. I’ve mentioned the idea before in an earlier post. Now I actually wanted to put it to practice. I set up all the software easy enough - I installed Linux, MPD plus a webclient and a samba share. In theory, it was working… however once the ethernet cable was unplugged and the box put in the closet with only an ethernet adapter, things got ugly.
I plugged in the power and booted up the computer. To my dismay, the box did not pick up any wifi signal. Not even a trace. The computer was sitting in a complete dead zone. To be honest, I was not surprised. The signal had to travel up a floor, to the opposite side of the house, through a kitchen. Kitchens are notoriously bad for wifi, all the equipment tends to block the RF waves.
So I did some research on the net. What could I do to increase my routers power and thus give life to my new jukebox? Thats when this link, like an angel out of heaven, found its way to my eyes.
The EZ 12 from freeantennas.com
Its a template for a parabola you can attach to your wireless rotuer’s antennas. All you have to do is cut out the template, resize it to your liking, glue on some tinfoil and attach it. I made one for each antenna and it only took me about 10 minutes.
The thing worked much better than I would have ever thought! All of a sudden my jukebox could pick up signal, not that great, but better than nothing. I also noticed that the signal strength in my room with my laptop went from 80% to 95% +.
[caption id=”attachment_135” align=”aligncenter” width=”300” caption=”My D-Link router with the windsurfers attached.”]
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The windsurfers work by focusing all of the RF waves in one direction, instead of all directions like the antennas without them. If you are anywhere in front of the direction of the router, you will see a significant increase in signal. From behind, not so much.
The directions on the site say that you need to use thick paper, but I found that regular printer paper works just fine. After you insert the tabs into the reflector, just bend the tabs up and use a piece of scotch tape to hold them there.
Bigger is better, so I edited the image to a size thats big enough to just barely fit on a piece of printer paper:
[caption id=”attachment_136” align=”aligncenter” width=”414” caption=”The Windsurfer Template (click for fullsize)”]
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Enjoy the increased signal! I know I am.
Attention Linux Geeks!
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LinuxCult.org is a new linux forum some of my friends have been working on lately. Its still in the infant stages, but I really encourage any linux users to stop by and check it out. Its going to be great.
The board is going to have many great features. One of the cool things already housed there are the helper scripts - written by myself - that attempt to solve several common problems people have with linux. The first one has already been written. If you have problems with Linux, Ubuntu and Flash not working or not having sound, you should give this a try:
http://www.linuxcult.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=5
See you there!
Fingel.com: Served From a Patch of Dirt in SOMA.
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This website’s server is located on what appears to be a dirt lot in San Francisco’s south of Market Neighborhood according to Geotool. I always knew Laughing Squid had secret undreground headquarters.
Thoughts After One Year at Southern Oregon Univeristy
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So here I am, sitting at this desk that I’ve written so many posts from before. Scattered around me are miscellaneous notes and papers crying for attention, “Study me!” says my Geology Final review sheet, “Fill me out so you don’t get a $50 fee!” says my end of the year dorm checkout packet. Its the end of my freshman year at Southern Oregon University. Some of the time has been great, some bad. Here are my thoughts for anyone interested in the school:
The Good
First of all, lets talk about the size of the school. Its small, really small, for a university. There are only about 5,000 students in all. Now I never quite understood why this turned people off, but I think its great. The average class size is only about 20 people. When you combine that with the fact that 90% of all the professors have a PhD in their field you get some really good personal education. The classes here are absolutely top notch, every day I go to sleep feeling like I’ve learned a lot. Professors are also very acessible. Because there aren’t too many studnets office hours aren’t very cramped, and its usually possible to see a professor for help without an appointment.
Many of the professors also run extra curricular clubs after class. This can be really beneficial to students interested in the subjects they are studying.
If you like the outdoors you will like Ashland. SOU lies under the shadow of Mt. Ashland, which has skiing in the winter and top notch mountain biking during the summer. The Rogue and Klamath rivers are just as stone’s throw away as well abundant hiking trails in pretty much any direction. Make sure to pack your boots.
The Bad
Dorm life. I know this can be a matter of opinion but living in the dorms is a nightmare and there is no way it should be “required” for incoming freshman. You pay nearly $800 a month to be put in a little 15x20 room with another person. I could practically tell what my roommate had for dinner every night just from the smell of his breath even though he was on the opposite side of the room. In the summer there is no air conditioning, during the winter we had our heater up 100% for 3 months straight and it never got warm. Its loud, there is no privacy, it smells and the bathrooms are absolutely horrid. On top of that you get a bunch of drunk idiots wandering around all the time thinking they are your friends just because you were unfortunate enough to be stuck in the same hall as them. Now I can only speak for myself, but I don’t enjoy being treated like a child. There are special “campus public safety” officers wandering the halls all the time trying to keep an eye on you making sure you aren’t doing anything naughty. No, dorms were not for me.
SOU also comes across as a little money grubbing at times. This is understandable considering the economic state of schools in Oregon but it has to be mentioned anyway. Lately the school has been renting out the F&G classroom, which is basically the main entrance to the Forest Hall where I live, and us students often have to go around. How would they like it if we held a party in their living room and made them go around? Often us students feel like second class citizens to anyone else using the school even though we pay the most to be here. Also, there are fines for everything here, but I think that comes with the territory of running a profitable institution.
The Ugly
The Cascade Food Court where freshmen can spend their meal points which come as part of the dorm package. This place has literally made people sick, and its made me skinny. We are talking bottom of the barrel low quality generic Sysco food that is left in steaming buckets for way too long. The food has often times been known to be inedible, and sometimes students say that they would prefer just to skip a meal or two than to dine in cascade. I would encourage dropping the meal points and learning how to cook.
Conclusion
I think SOU is a great school and I will be returning next year. Although it does have its share of bad parts, I believe most of them are associated with being a freshman. Next year should be great for a number of reasons, mainly because I wont be living in the dorms any longer and I can take some of the higher level classes I have been waiting for. Have a good summer all!
Vince Neil - You Betta Fight For Your Rights Now!
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I made my first YTMND site today, you can find it here:
http://vinceneil.ytmnd.com/
Doughnut, Ice Tea and Some Live Typhoid Bacteria.
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According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention my next travel destination Nicaragua can be a pretty germy place. Along with a few other immunizations, I was prescribed an oral vaccine for Typhoid Fever sold under the name Vivotif Berna. It was not easy to get a hold of. When I went to my doctor in hopes
to get a prescription, she insisted that she had never heard of it and hinted that I must be mistaken in it’s existence. I sat in the doctor’s office for nearly 45 minutes while she made phone calls but eventually she did return with a prescription paper in hand. “You learn something new every day” She told me.
I headed over to Bi Mart to get the prescription filled. They told me it would take only 15 minutes, but ended up taking over an hour. The pharmacist finally called me to the desk and not only did he have the pills but also a huge book with tiny print. “So lets see what we have here” he said as he squinted at the page. “The pills must be refrigerated at all time. You are to take one every other day with cold water 1 hour before a meal. Make sure you don’t chew or break the pills.” I’d never heard instructions like these before. “Those pills are alive, huh?” I asked. “I suppose they are. So go home and stick them in the fridge. Have a nice trip.”
The fact that it was 100 degrees outside and I had to walk 2 miles to get back to my room worried me a little. I didn’t want the lil’ buggers to wake up but I’ve already taken 1 and I feel fine so far. However, If I don’t post for a few days, assume the worst.