Saturday, February 06, 2010
Too much snow!
21 inches of snow in about 18 hours. It took me more than two hours to clear trenches out in our sidewalks and I haven't even started on the driveway!
Friday, January 08, 2010
Rowing in the New Year
So, with the start of the New Year, Heather and I have decided to get into better shape. Heather's weapon of choice is our treadmill coupled with a workout video she had. I've decided to break out my rowing machine.
Why rowing? When I worked at Boy Scout camp as a teenager, I worked as a lifeguard at the waterfront. One of our requirements as a lifeguard was to row a quarter mile in under 5 minutes. When I first started, it took me 10 minutes or so to get it done but with practice and work, I was able to row a quarter mile in about 4 minutes or so.
I haven't rowed a real boat since, but the feeling of rowing is so comfortable to me that it's an exercise that I can truly enjoy. That's important because I tend to get bored while exercising very easily. I don't know how I survived the hundreds of 90 minute swim practices while in high school. You can't even hear a radio under the water!
Anyway, so my goal is to vigorously row about 15 minutes every weekday. Once my body gets into better shape, I'll look at either upping my rowing time or branching out into other exercises. Wish me luck!
Why rowing? When I worked at Boy Scout camp as a teenager, I worked as a lifeguard at the waterfront. One of our requirements as a lifeguard was to row a quarter mile in under 5 minutes. When I first started, it took me 10 minutes or so to get it done but with practice and work, I was able to row a quarter mile in about 4 minutes or so.
I haven't rowed a real boat since, but the feeling of rowing is so comfortable to me that it's an exercise that I can truly enjoy. That's important because I tend to get bored while exercising very easily. I don't know how I survived the hundreds of 90 minute swim practices while in high school. You can't even hear a radio under the water!
Anyway, so my goal is to vigorously row about 15 minutes every weekday. Once my body gets into better shape, I'll look at either upping my rowing time or branching out into other exercises. Wish me luck!
Friday, June 12, 2009
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Announcing Henry
My wife and I are pleased to announce the birth of our son, Henry Clark. Henry was born on June 27, 2008. Everyone is doing fine; big sister Abigail is quite concerned...
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
The Light of Other Days
Well, my blog has turned into something of a book review. I was in the middle of reading The Elves of Cintra when I came across a reference to the Arthur C. Clarke book, The Light of Other Days. I ordered it from a local library and quickly devoured the book.
In summary, the book is focused on the events following the creation of a remote viewing technology which can be used anywhere at any time. As the technology becomes widespread, everyone can see what everyone else is doing whenever they want, even going back in time.
The premise is great. The plot sucked. The characters were rather boring and unsympathetic. I never really connected with them and didn't care what happened to him. In a big "revelation" towards the denouement I found that I just didn't care.
The interesting parts to me were the changes that the invention brings to humanity. Some chapters have nothing to do with the books characters, but merely serve as background to how the invention causes fundamental shifts in the way our society perceives itself. That's what was interesting to me; that's why I tore through the book so quickly.
Interested in science fiction? Does the premise interest you? Go check it out at the library and give it a read. Don't concern yourself too much with the plot; it's just a bunch of people talking on the stage. It's the changes in the sets behind the actors which are most interesting...
In summary, the book is focused on the events following the creation of a remote viewing technology which can be used anywhere at any time. As the technology becomes widespread, everyone can see what everyone else is doing whenever they want, even going back in time.
The premise is great. The plot sucked. The characters were rather boring and unsympathetic. I never really connected with them and didn't care what happened to him. In a big "revelation" towards the denouement I found that I just didn't care.
The interesting parts to me were the changes that the invention brings to humanity. Some chapters have nothing to do with the books characters, but merely serve as background to how the invention causes fundamental shifts in the way our society perceives itself. That's what was interesting to me; that's why I tore through the book so quickly.
Interested in science fiction? Does the premise interest you? Go check it out at the library and give it a read. Don't concern yourself too much with the plot; it's just a bunch of people talking on the stage. It's the changes in the sets behind the actors which are most interesting...
Saturday, June 30, 2007
The Undercover Economist
From my reading list in January, I forgot to mention The Undercover Economist by Tim Harford. Harford writes "The Undercover Economist" column for the Financial Times in London; this book is an extension of that column.
I thought the book was quite good. It sounds like a boring topic, but its not... It's basically a look at how the world is set up in the mind of an economist. Harford covers topics ranging from poverty in Africa (why are poor countries still poor?) to the difficulty in buying a used car (the dealer knows whether its a lemon). Each topic is covered from the point of view of an economist.
That may be the books shortcoming however. I have a bachelor's degree in economics. Therefore, when he was explaining topics like scarcity, marginal costs, and market efficiencies, I knew exactly what he was talking about. Unfortunately, I don't think the layman would be able to follow along with the ideas in his book. Don't get me wrong, Harford does a good job in explaining what he's talking about. But when half of the population doesn't understand the basic concept of supply and demand, it's unlikely that they are going to understand that a producer produces where the marginal costs equals the marginal benefit.
So, having said that, if you're interested in economics, this is a great book. If you want a more street level book which is much easier to understand, I'd recommend "Freakonomics", the best-seller from 2006. It's focus seems to be much more on the consequences of peoples actions from the drug trade to the name that parent's choose for their children. It's quite an interesting read and I'd recommend it as well.
I thought the book was quite good. It sounds like a boring topic, but its not... It's basically a look at how the world is set up in the mind of an economist. Harford covers topics ranging from poverty in Africa (why are poor countries still poor?) to the difficulty in buying a used car (the dealer knows whether its a lemon). Each topic is covered from the point of view of an economist.
That may be the books shortcoming however. I have a bachelor's degree in economics. Therefore, when he was explaining topics like scarcity, marginal costs, and market efficiencies, I knew exactly what he was talking about. Unfortunately, I don't think the layman would be able to follow along with the ideas in his book. Don't get me wrong, Harford does a good job in explaining what he's talking about. But when half of the population doesn't understand the basic concept of supply and demand, it's unlikely that they are going to understand that a producer produces where the marginal costs equals the marginal benefit.
So, having said that, if you're interested in economics, this is a great book. If you want a more street level book which is much easier to understand, I'd recommend "Freakonomics", the best-seller from 2006. It's focus seems to be much more on the consequences of peoples actions from the drug trade to the name that parent's choose for their children. It's quite an interesting read and I'd recommend it as well.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
