Lame Web Archives - June 2006 - December 2006
December 20, 2006 (12:05 pm) The Lame Web Cam will be on for the duration of the day!
December 15, 2006 (9:58 am) Greetings Lame people! Lisa and I are off on a Las Vegas extravaganza. Before we leave, I'd like to share a few pictures from what certainly was an up and down week last week. Last weekend started off with a wreck ,a nice big smash of Sakai. I'll tell the story later (Oscar's fault!) but here's a peek at the damage:
Yep, no fun. Later I'll tell you about "The Health Scare", "The Certified Letter Fiasco", "The Visa Angst", "Vegas in Jeopardy" and other fun tales. Then there were plenty of "ups", in particular this:
Erin, Mike, and Ella sent Aunt Lisa and Godfather Sid an engraved frame of us with Ella at her Christening. I have the greatest Sister and Brother-in-law, thank you so much! It reads "Ella Grace, November 25, 2006". Outstanding! We also received a holiday card:
Here's the Anniversary card I made for Lisa (thanks Tammy!) - the third anniversary is leather, so instead of screwing up and getting something like shoes or a purse she hates, I made a card out of real (yes, real) leather:
This is so cool - This is a patch for the Shooters for the carrier Teddy Roosevelt. There are only two ways to get your hands on one of these: 1) be a Shooter on the Teddy Roosevelt, or 2) know a Shooter on the Teddy Roosevelt who has a spare patch. Me, the latter. Thanks Mike!
That's all for now, hopefully I'll get back on the update train (currently derailed). By the way, if you're like me (and I know you are) you're obsessed with the Outback Steakhouse song "Let's go Outback Tonight", it's by a Canadian band (figures) named "Of Montreal", based on their song "Wrath and pinning over mist and games of Canadians" or something like that. I can't stop listening.
December 9, 2006 (9:30 am) Good morning Lame web page family. Lisa and I have a lot of errands to run today. First we like to start off the day with a little Bakehouse. Then, we're off to the post office to purchase two money orders for our Brazil visas. Then off to Walgreens for passport photos (also for the visas). We'll follow that up with a little Christmas shopping, then some grocery shopping, then back home. In the meantime, enjoy the ever popular "Cat Cam" on the Lame resources page.
December 3, 2006 (5:15 pm) Greetings and happy holidays Lame Web Page Family. Long time no blog. We are proud to present Lame Thanksgiving 2006 pictures, check them out in the pictures section. Lisa and I had a wonderful time with Erin, Mike, and Ella, and our families in Norfolk VA. I'll get into the details later, tell a couple of stories, but right now I need to get ready to go see "Bond" at the Alamo. Here's a link I promised with some information on aircraft carriers: http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/cv.htm.
November 19, 2006 (8:14 pm) Let's see what was accomplished on the Lame Web Page today - not much. I did manager to post our Halloween pictures. I also downloaded sounds and pictures for all three movie reviews but didn't actually write the reviews. The former is the most time consuming part. I should also point out that although I do love bacon, egg, and cheese biscuits, I certainly can not endorse eating them. Here's why, the nutrition data compliments of nutritiondata.com. Lisa also would like to point out that she had never had one until our taste test. I'm ashamed to admit that when I eat them, I eat two.
November 19, 2006 (10:06 am) There seems to be a Lame Web Page drought as of late. Time, inspiration, many factors inhibit the good work. Do not fear, Lame Web Page family. Today looks like a good day for an update. The Lame Web Cam is on full-blast (resources section) and I'm planning to devote today to Lame updates and cleaning our crack-house condo. Buckle up. Just for fun, let's look at the goals and then ridicule me for how few I actually accomplish:
> Reviews of "The Science of Sleep", "Borat", and "Stranger Than Fiction"
> Post Comrade Alex's move in the Cold War chess battle, which at this point has lasted longer than the cold war.
> Post Halloween pictures, and the final New Zealand pictures
> Add new pictures to the Lame Web Page patented "Picturnator".
> Work on the new and exciting "Picturnator" game. Match four "Comrades" and receive a glorious prize - Comrade Alex's Winter Survival Kit. Details to follow.
November 14, 2006 (9:45 pm) Happy birthday today to official Lame Web Page Mom, Mom! I'm off to bed, oh so tired.
November 9, 2006 (11:00 pm) I'm in the mood for a little news! Granted, some of this is old but certainly no less relevant today. Via Yahoo! news, NASA has moved the Discovery shuttle to the launch pad in hopes of a December 7 launch. Why the rush you ask? From the story, "The worry is that shuttle computers aren't designed to make the change from the 365th day of the old year to the first day of the new year while in flight. NASA has never had a shuttle in space Dec. 31 or Jan. 1."
NASA symbolizes the very best and brightest America has to offer. When you ask a young child "what do you want to be when you grow up?" you'll probably hear "an astronaut." We yearn to sleep on mattresses made from NASA developed temper foam. Then we get this gem from one of the very, very, very few who actually become an astronaut - "We've just never had the computers up and going when we've transitioned from one year to another," said Discovery astronaut Joan Higginbotham. "We're not really sure how they're going to operate."
Maybe someday NASA will be able to develop computers than can handle the way we mark the passage of time. Moving on...
From AP writer Steve "get your mind out of the" Gutterman via Yahoo news. "Russia may block release of 'Borat'" This just makes me mad. Lisa and I really want to see "Borat" this weekend, and now Russia is going to block it, probably with a naval blockade. I'm sure Comrade is thrilled that the Motherland is still meddling in the affairs of one of her estranged, misbehaved children. Lisa points out no comedy has been this fresh since "Little Miss Sunshine". Damn.
One of the aspect of Seattle Comrade Alex enjoys and appreciates the most is the music scene. Simon Cowell is reported as saying the city of Seattle is "totally miserable". From the internet movie database - "They had the worst bunch of miserable singers that I've ever met in my life. It was two days of total misery. And the weather was bad, as well". Comrade, I expect an extremely terse response.
Also this week in Yahoo news - "Neil Patrick Harris: I'm Gay". Insert sound of crickets chirping here.
Also this week in Yahoo news - "Spears Files for Divorce". More crickets, make it a dozen.
This is irrelevant now, but struck me as funny at the time - "MoveOn Offers $250,000 Reward for Evidence Leading to Voter Fraud Conviction". Let the witch hunt begin. Democrats - "these are the best ideas we have, but we're not George Bush!"
From Yahoo science news - "Barbados faces invasion by giant snails". There's no point in reading a story with a headline like this, the headline is all the enjoyment you need. I will tell you the story mentions the snails are the size of a human hand.
November 5, 2006 (8:15 pm) Today has been a Sunday full of Lame updates. Starting with some pictures, I'm proud to present "Summer Pictures - Part Two" and "Fall Pictures - Part One" featuring the much anticipated Halloween pictures. I'm thrilled also to include contributions from Mom, Julia, and Erin.
With the election right around the corner I thought I should present those Lame Web Page Family member "Republican Value Voters" with a nice table summary of recent "Value-Added" events within your party. I hope this insightful guide helps you as you make those important decisions on Tuesday.
November 3, 2006 (11:30 pm) Today is a very important day, Lame Web Page family. Today is the day we celebrate the birthday of Official Lame Web Page Sister, Erin. Happy birthday, Sis! Thirty-one-derful years, who could ever imagine both of us over thirty (ok, I should have said that a year ago but it just occurred to me). Hope you enjoyed celebrating your first birthday with kiddo in tow!
October 29, 2006 (9:30 pm) Look for some fresh, delicious updates in the "pictures" section. We present for your viewing pleasure "Ella", an ongoing documentation of the development of #1 niece, and "Summer 2006 Part One", as the recap of the fading Summer begins. Coming soon, part two.
October 23, 2006 (6:30 pm) Dinner cam is on, check it out in the "Lame Resources" section!
October 22, 2006 (1:50 am) I planned on staying up late tonight and performing a "Super Lame Web Page Update". Goodness this is time consuming, it's taken me three hours just to post another set of pictures. Therefore I am proud to present "New Zealand Re-Visited Part Four - Moeraki and Oamaru". Check it out in the pictures section.
October 10, 2006 (10:45 pm) A very special birthday wish to official Lame Web Page Dad, Dad. Happy 62nd, Dad!
October 2, 2006 (10:45 pm) The stories, blogs, and picture are really stacking up, but alas, it's almost 11pm and there's a long day ahead tomorrow. One more day without a Lame update of any consequence.
October 2, 2006 (10:05 pm) A very special "Happy Birthday" to official Lame Web Page kid Olivia, who celebrates her third birthday today. Hugs and kisses from Sid and Lisa, we can't wait to see you! Five months and counting.
September 23, 2006 (11:22 pm) Hello Lame Web Page family. I'm happy to present two new movie reviews - "Little Miss Sunshine" and "Idiocracy". From the confused country of Canada (my impression) I'd like to give you the first in my two part series "Sid's Toronto Dining Reviews".
Part one: Spice Thai on Queen's Quay. The first thing I do when traveling is find a good Thai restaurant within walking distance of my hotel. I found "Spice Thai" directly across the street. I walked in at about 7pm and was pleased at the number of customers eating there (always a good sign). I proceed to order the usual, Pad Thai with soft spring rolls. The staff was very nice and invited me to sit at the bar while I waited. The Pad Thai came with shrimp, tofu, and chicken, I requested shrimp and tofu only. After a very quick ten minutes I was on my way back to the hotel. I started with the spring rolls, instead of two large rolls I got 4 small cigar sized rolls. I liked the size, and the taste was good, no cucumber (rare treat to not have to remove cucumber slivers). The dipping sauce was a sweet and spicy oil, a change from the usual peanut sauce, it was quite good.
Moving on to the Pad Thai - Pad Thai is by its nature quite greasy, and the ingredients are few. Rice noodles, oil, meat or tofu, green onions, sprouts, chopped peanuts, tamarind paste, and lime juice. I look for two things when I eat Pad Thai - how well have they controlled the amount of oil and what kind of oil did they use. Some Pad Thai is orange, looks like the kind of grease that drips off Taco Bell ground beef. The second is clear, with a distinct peanut oil taste. This is by far my preference. Spice Thai's Pad Thai fell a little bit towards the orange side, however the level of greasiness was under control. The noodles were cooked a little soft, which I like.
The second thing is the taste, mainly the presence of the very distinct tamarind paste. The paste is very strong, and can give the Pad Thai a very pungent oder if too much is used. Likewise, too little leaves it tasting like any old noodle dish, it's what gives Pad Thai its distinctive flavor. The flavor was very good.
The third thing I look for (No one expects the Spanish Inquisition!) is the ingredients other than the noodles. Here's where Spice Thai came up short. Two shrimps? Very little Tofu? A couple of pieces of green onion? Who doesn't like a good amount of the bits, it's like getting butter pecan ice cream and having to search for precious pecan bites. But the taste was very good, so I decided to eat there the next night, and fortunatly the quality and service was good from one night to the next.
Part two: Mama Mia's Pizza, Queen's Quay. My second favorite travel take-out next to Thai is pizza. There are two pizza restaurants near the hotel. I arbitrarily tried "Mama Mia", because I like ABBA. I placed my order for a small with black olives and mushrooms and was told it would be a 20 minute wait. I like a long wait for a pizza, because I like my pizza cooked. Do you remember when there were pizza restaurants? My family used to go to one on Northwest Highway at Plano Road and wait literally hours for a pizza. Somehow magically in the mid-90's fast pizza became the norm.
Anyway, I walked to an ATM and a convenience store and by the time I was back my pizza was ready. I took it to my room, and did the crucial "first inspection". This pizza looked good - it was thin but not crispy, cooked really well (I like a little brown on the cheese) with plenty of toppings. It tasted pretty good, although a little too greasy. It dripped a little bit of that orange cheap cheese grease, and unfortunately that puts it in the "no good" category.
September 16, 2006 (9:00 pm) Greetings Lame Web Page readers! I'm reporting today from North-North America / West France / The 51st State - Canada! What a fine city this is. I enjoyed one of those "get on / get off" bus tours today, and saw a good portion of the city. I've been able to function fairly well but of course it's always difficult in a foreign country. For example, the money looks different, that's always confusing. They have a coin worth $2.00 (about $1.80 US), so you have to be careful when you give change to one of the many homeless people. Websites all end with ".ca". The official languages are Canadian English (eh?) and French. Everything is printed in French and English, even my granola bars. I find this odd because, according to the friendly and outspoken tour guide on the bus, the top three languages spoken in Toronto are English, Chinese, and Hindi. According to the "Toronto - City of Diversity" website, this is not true, but it is more interesting.
Toronto is also a city of museums, however I don't plan to visit any of them. Unfortunately, Toronto is not a downtown of movie theaters, the only one is a Megaplex that's not in walking distance of my hotel.
Moving on, from the isn't religion fun news, as I'm sure you've all been following the story of the Muslim world's reaction to a speech by Pope "Eggs" Benedict. Always on the cutting edge of modern relevance the Pope referred to text of comments of 14th century Byzantine Christian Emperor Manuel Paleologos II in an attempt to show that war and religion are incompatible. Palestinians, in an attempt to further enlighten the West by showing theirs is a peaceful religion, fire-bombed churches and burned effigies of the Pope.
Found in Yahoo news, a story by AP writer Matt Edensky - Hotels are starting to open up across the country that cater to "Mancationing". Yes, it's "Man" and "Vacation" all wrapped up into one. These hotels will offer everything the a Man could ever want - directions to the hottest clubs, poker, sports, hand-rolled cigars, a great beer selection.
The story points out that an "Urban Dictionary" (whatever the hell that is) defines a Mancation as "men engaging in masculine activities such as sports, camping, gambling, chasing women and drinking, without the presence of wives, mistresses or girlfriends." The Lame Web Page would like to offer a new definition of the term - "Totally Gay".
September 14, 2006 (11:00 pm) Greetings Lame Web Page family! Long time no blog. The usual excuses apply, too busy, too lazy, etc. Tonight I'm participating in my least favorite activity - packing. I hate to pack. I will forget something and for some reason it always makes my back hurt. Another long day at work has lead to another short day at home, thus limiting my blogging will. I'm off to Toronto, Canada tomorrow and using the latest cutting edge technology I hope to bring you the first ever on-the-road blog updates. I thought about trying to post fresh, dynamic pictures, but the effort involved with crawling under the desk to un-plug the camera cord is just too much to bear.
One more update you might not be aware of - I finally posted the pictures from double-graduation 2006, as Tasha and Van celebrated the end of one phase of their young lives and the start of another. Well done, kiddos! I also must point out there is a Flash animation of the Jominator, getting all Jominated on the Undertaker. As we all know I love the Flash (look to your left) but suck at the animations (remember the cannibal?) I must say it's my best effort yet.
Sorry about the lack of updates, more soon I promise!
September 2, 2006 (10:30 pm) Welcome to the beginning of the Great Return of the Lame Web Page. Check out the "pictures" section on the left for New Zealand part three - Dunedin and the Otago Peninsula.
Just a friendly reminder - none of our @sidandlisa.net email addresses since the Lame Web Page official web host was changed. Check out the references section for the latest and correct email addresses for Sid and Lisa.
Happy Birthday Lisa!
August 23, 2006
Lisa and I sit down to a delicious dinner of grilled cheese sandwiches, topped off with birthday cake and champagne. Happy 34th birthday to Lisa, here's looking forward to the best times yet! I love you buddy!
I'm an Uncle! Lisa's an Aunt! Mom and Dad are Grandparents! Erin and Mike are Mom and Dad! My how things change when the baby is born. Let the spoiling commence! Erin and Mike, I'm "Uncle Sid". Better yet, "Crazy Uncle Sid", it has a nice ring to it. Check out our beautiful niece. I heard she has a "little" hair. For two days old I'd call that a lot of hair! Mom and Dad are home now enjoying life with the new kiddo.
July 30, 2006 (7:32 pm) I'm on a roll - review of "Nacho Libre" posted.
July 29, 2006 (7:32 pm) Believe it or not, a new movie review. Presenting Sid's review of "Superman Returns"; more soon.
July 22, 2006 (3:34 pm) Wow, that last blog had a lot of spelling errors. Factual and logic errors are acceptable, but not spelling errors.
I'm proud to announce the debut of a new hosting provider for the Lame Web Page. Globat, which has been on notice for 3 weeks, is dead to me now. I've moved to godaddy.com, and in one easy morning we're back up and running.
Problems - the customer service challenged Globat still clings to the "jimdunlap.net" domain name, and they won't let go. It was set to expire at the and of July, so we'll see how that goes. "sidandlisa.net" is registered with namesdirect.com, a stellar registration service, although a little pricey.
Don't fear - we certainly will never deprive you of the excellent content of jimdunlap.net - click on the link above to view in its temporary location. Updates as they come available.
July 16, 2006 (10:30 pm) Another weekend gone, another weekend with out any Lame Web Page updates. I'm sure you've noticed www.jimdunlap.net is gone, don't worry - in another 24-48 hours it'll be back in all of its glory. I realize the entire Country is in a heat wave right now, and I shouldn't complain, but my gosh it was hot today. Mat and I played one of the most low-energy tennis matches ever today (ok, I was low energy and he was bouncing around all over the place). I burned, oh did I burn. Having a sun burn makes me sleepy. Alex said she burned on the fourth of July. Get these fair people some sunscreen!
I'm tired, but there are a few things to cover. Hold on to your chair, it's a Lame Web Page current events blog blitz!
Recall the tragic story of the idiot teen Edith Delgado who was racing her Mustang at 100 miles an hour down Highway 101 in Menlo Park California when she side swiped a car carrying a Tongan prince and princess killing them and a third person? Regrettably Delgado was not injured. There was a story in Yahoo News that the royal family in Tonga has forgiven the girl. Forgiveness is a nice thing, but come on. The pain this person has caused due to her stupidity is beyond forgiveness. I do like this quote from Princess Siu'ilikutapu, the older sister of the Princess who was killed in response to being asked if they were going to ask authorities to drop the criminal charges against Delgado: "Forgiveness does not close one's eye to justice, no one is above the law." So sad, so stupid.
In a related story from Yahoo News, "Alcohol a Bigger Threat to U.S. Youth Than Drugs" This story notes almost 3,200 minors die each year as a result of Alcohol abuse, which is four times more than die due to illegal drugs. You go war on drugs!
Lame Web Page research finds that 3,620 teenagers died in car crashes in 2004, more than by alcohol or drug abuse. You know how I feel about driving - it's a privilege and not a right. Teenagers - provisional license at 16, one traffic ticket and it's suspended until 20. Period, and don't whine. Driving tests every 10 years after 50. Moving violation = 3 month license suspension. It's only fair. Right now, with a monetary fine it impacts some worse than others. A $300 fine to Mr. $50,000 SUV has no impact, but for Ms. hard working 10 year old Honda Civic driver it's a big punishment. Some countries issue fines based on the value of the car. I say 3 months no license, get your ass on the bus. And no, no chance to higher a lawyer and get out of it. Mandatory. Think of the lives that would be saved. Given how many people die each year in car crashes I can't understand the lack of attention, so many are preventable. Moving on...
Actress June Allyson dies last week and the impressive age of 88, and all I can think about is "Depends".
Robert Downey Jr. announced he's going to write his autobiography and the not so impressive age of 41. Maybe I'll read it when I'm finished with Tom Sizemore's. Coming soon to the discount bin at a Half-Price Books near you.
The Internet Movie Database reports Courtney Cox Arquette and what's his face are planning on having a second child. They'd like to add a brother or sister for two-year-old daughter Coco.
I don't care about the story, I just like that their daughter is named "Coco". I guess "T-Bone" was taken.
Also from the IMDB - Dakota "North or South" Fanning has been named as a new member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. Seems odd someone who's too young to watch any of last year's Best Picture nominations will be casting an Oscar vote. Good luck "Pirates", there's hope yet!
It was reported that a missile test launched by India fell well short of its target and the mission declared a failure. This was followed up with a rocket carrying a TV satellite that veered off course and exploded after takeoff. I don't know what I find this funny, but I do.
I'm sure everyone following Texas politics is familiar with the fight by Carol Keeton Strayhorn McClellan Consuelo Smith-Jones Keeton to get her nickname "Grandma" on the gubernatorial (least favorite word finalist) ballot this November. The State says no, it's not an established nickname, it's a campaign slogan. I've lived here since 1995, and although I've heard CKS called a number of things, "Grandma" hasn't been one of them. She of course goes on to say it won't matter come November (which is true) but she fights anyway. Go Kinky!
Last week President Bush met with Russian President Putin and said he'd "speak frankly but privately" about recent Kremlin moves to restrict political and economic freedom.
In a related story found by Comrade Alex in the Moscow Times - "President Putin said he'd speak 'speak frankly but privately' about recent Bush administration moves to restrict political and economic freedom".
And in a related story Jui Chakravorty reports that the White House asks for dismissal of NSA wiretap suit. The Bush administration has "invoked a legal doctrine known as the 'state-secrets privilege' that it has used to head off other court action spy programs". "State-secrets privilege"? The founder roll in their graves! The Government exists at the whim of the people, not the other way around. Time to show "The Government" who is really in charge - vote each and every one of them out of office. We have the power. Get to work rallying support for the Lame Web Page "everyone but the incumbent" campaign.
And in yet another related story, the White House says Gitmo prisoner's won't be moved to the U.S. Here's a challenge for you - try to think of something more un-American than holding prisoners for years without due process, representation, or charges. Even thought they're not citizens, it's a terrible blow to the promotion of the ideals that we say we want to spread around the world.
If you need a good laugh check out www.traditionalvalues.org.
Backing up a little bit - New York was planning on prosecuting a private skating rink in Accord because they had "Christian Skate Time" on Sundays. They changed the name to "Spiritual Skate Time". It's a private company, they should be able to have "Christian", "Muslim", "Short People", or whatever the hell skate time they want. Ironically, the owners enlisted the help of the ACLU to keep the "Christian" name. That's right conservatives, the same ACLU that you think is waging a war on Christianity. Funny stuff.
July 2, 2006 (10:23 pm) Finally, it looks like Computerpalooza 2006 is finally over. Get ready for some serious Lame Web Page update. Also, I have many new Backyard Zoos and even some movie reviews.
June 21, 2006 (11:09 pm) Please say it ain't so - from Yahoo news "NYC councilman proposes limiting fast food". New York councilcommie Joel Rivera is proposing using zoning to limit the number of fast food restaurants in New York City. Rivera notes there's a higher concentration of fast food restaurants in low-income communities. Let me see if I understand his thinking. Let's say low-income neighborhood "X" has a KFC, Jack in the Box, McDonalds, and a Wendy's on one block. Rivera restructures the zoning so the Jack in the Box and Wendy's have to close, leaving only the KFC and McDonalds. Does he think 50% of the people who would be having fast food will now hop on the bus to go uptown in search of a Whole Foods where they can buy some vegetables? One word for Mr. Rivera - demand. Fast food restaurants will go where they can sell their product, that's it; no other considerations.
This is a stupid blog, but at least it's a blog. I'm getting back in the groove, slowly but surely.
June 19, 2006 (11:00 pm) I hope official Lame Web Page Dad, Dad, along with all the other Fathers in the Lame Web Page family had a wonderful Father's day!
June 15, 2006 (10:27 pm) With Lisa and me both sick what a great time (really the only time) to waste three hours watching a basketball game! The Mavericks were skunked. I did work a little on the Lame Web Page this evening. I'm working on posting pictures from Graduation 2006, hopefully by tomorrow.
I paid our cell phone bill today and notice last month I used 9 minutes, and Lisa 18. That's no good - give me a call at 512-657-2606. Even if you have nothing to say (goodness knows I don't) at least it will help eat into those 5000 minutes.
June 12, 2006 (10:15 pm) Believe me, it's not that I don't want to update the Lame Web Page. The time is flying, there's something off in the Universe and I don't seem to have a minute to spare. Not to mention the computer crash left me with a lot of recovery work. Shortly prior to the crash I had received a couple of great emails, from Reverend Ray and Cecelia. They're gone; if you still have them may I trouble you to re-send them? On that note, I'm off to bed.
June 3, 2006 (11:15 pm) The Lame Web updates are back! After a very long week without a computer, and a less than stellar performance making a new computer, I'm happy to say the Lame updates will be making a brilliant return in the near future. Also watch for more run-on sentences in the blog. More soon.