Friday, February 23, 2007

Alcohol Knowledge

Well, it is Friday, so the four or five readers of this blog know what that is likely to mean. Yes, another one of those little quizzes. The result for this one was not surprising, but I had a good teacher on this topic. My godfather made it a point to make sure his godson not only knew about how to drink responsibly, but that he also knew how to appreciate the finer points of drinking. Many were the Sunday afternoons we would visit, uncork a few bottles of some fine Chilean wine, eat some cheese, then have a nice homecooked meal, and just spend some time talking and enjoying a few jokes. And if he brought the guitar, you knew some singing and music would be in the works as well. Yes, the guy played a mean acoustic guitar.

Additionally, I just started reading Maureen Ogle's history of American breweries, Ambitious Brew, so posting this seemed to go along with that. My results then:













Bacardi 151

Congratulations! You're 139 proof, with specific scores in beer (120) , wine (100), and liquor (130).

All right. No more messing around. Your knowledge of alcohol is so high that you have drinking and getting plastered down to a science. Sure, you could get wasted drinking beer, but who needs all those trips to the bathroom? You head straight for the bar and pick up that which is most efficient.
















My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:
free online datingfree online dating
You scored higher than 99% on proof
free online datingfree online dating
You scored higher than 99% on beer index
free online datingfree online dating
You scored higher than 99% on wine index
free online datingfree online dating
You scored higher than 99% on liquor index




Link: The Alcohol Knowledge Test written by hoppersplit on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

Booknote: The Theocons

Linker, Damon. The Theocons: Secular America Under Siege. New York: Doubleday, 2006. ISBN: 0385516479. 288pgs.

Genre: Nonfiction
Subgenre: Current affairs, politics

This is a very dry book to read. Yet, it is a decent source to understand why the Christian Right holds so much sway in the Republican Party. Linker shows how much of what we think of the Christian Right has nothing to do with evangelicals. Actually, the movements today are shaped in large measure by a small group of Catholic activists who have managed to create alliances with evangelicals. The story looks at the philosophical roots of the theocon movement and then charts its progress showing that, in the end, they basically seek to remove the notion of the separation of church and state to impose their own apocalyptic view. Unfortunately, the narrative is extremely dry. It is not an engaging book, which is a pity because I think more people should be reading it. The book includes notes in the back.

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Now THAT is one hell of a tv set

This is a sad story of a man who died a year ago, but he was found with the tv still running. This is one of those stories we hear about the tragedy of dying alone without anyone to look after you. Don't get me wrong; I feel sorry for the man. However, I want to know what brand of television the guy had that it was still running a year later. That is one solid and durable piece of equipment if it outlasted its owner. But I also want to know the answer to other questions:

  • What was he "watching" at the time? I can see now the advertisements from the network that had the program playing at the time he was found. Gives a whole new meaning to "must watch TV."
  • How the hell did he not get his electricity cut by the company after a while? According to the article, at one point, a lady helped him pay some bills. They then had a fallout. So, did he still pay the bill? Maybe he had automatic pay from the bank and enough money in the account to keep paying the bill.
  • Who stopped the mail delivery? I can't even get the postal service to forward my mail to the right place or deliver it in a timely fashion. Since I moved to Texas, I have had to deal with all sorts of poor postal service. It is barely stable now two or so years later. I guess stopping it was easier, but is there some automatic directive the postal service follows of "the pile gets this high, we stop delivery?"
  • Was he the obnoxious type? The type no one wanted to visit, so therefore the neighbors just let him be?

So many questions. The lesson is: you want people to leave you alone, build your house "up a long driveway and [so it] could not be seen from the street." Humor aside, not a way I would want to go. Maybe the end lesson is to enjoy life while we have it, get out more, and cherish friends and family?

A hat tip to The Accidental Blogger.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

I barely made it to the list

This pretty much confirms what I knew already. Thanks you two (ok, if I go by the Kineda tool, about 5 or six). Anyhow, little fun thing. Could be worse. They could have kicked me out of any list.


D-List Blogger


A hat tip to Libraryola.

Saturday, February 10, 2007

Booknote: The Darwin Awards 4

Northcutt, Wendy. The Darwin Awards 4: Intelligent Design. New York: Dutton, 2006. ISBN: 0-525-94960-7.

Genre: Nonfiction
Subgenre: Humor, Stupidity


This series of books is great for anyone who wants to read about stupid people. I once heard a comedian say that "you can't fix stupid." I suggest that the way to fix it is to remove them from the gene pool so the stupid genes don't pass on. The Darwin Awards are given to those stupid people who do such dumb stunts that the result is death or loss of the ability to reproduce. However, getting close to that often gets people an honorable mention. The stories here are short and most of them are funny; others are just painful to read as you wonder what the hell were some of those people thinking when they did things like:

  • swallow a condom filled with beer (see page 169)
  • light a firework between your buttocks (see page 189)
  • fire a nail gun on your head (this was an honorable mention, see page 269)
By the way, stupidity knows no gender as men and women are equally stupid it seems. I am just glad some of those people will not be having children anytime soon. The book also includes some science essays between the chapters, which may of interest to readers and often serve to put stories in a chapter in context. In addition to the award winners and honorable mentions, the book also includes personal narratives submitted by readers. Overall, a very entertaining book with a cautionary element.

Readers can read more tales at the Darwin Awards website.

Friday, February 02, 2007

What Kind of Reader Am I?

Well made it to Friday. So, readers here know the semi-regular drill. Since I posted my reading list for 2006 over at The Gypsy Librarian, I figured this quiz would fit right in with a theme on reading. Anyhow, the result:


What Kind of Reader Are You?
Your Result: Dedicated Reader

You are always trying to find the time to get back to your book. You are convinced that the world would be a much better place if only everyone read more.

Literate Good Citizen

Book Snob

Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm

Fad Reader

Non-Reader

What Kind of Reader Are You?
Create Your Own Quiz




A hat tip to Liz's Library Tavern.

5 things about me meme

I got tagged for this by CW at Ruminations. I am running late on this kind of thing, but here we go. The prompt is "five things you don't know about me."

  1. I am the oldest of three brothers. I am very proud of my younger brothers even if I don't tell them as often as I could. Mom raised three boys with the admonition to "learn to take care of yourself and your house. No woman is going to come and do it for you."
  2. I am an Eagle Scout.
  3. Though we have two cats at home now, I grew up with dogs. In fact, as a child, we had a collie that was just like Lassie. I like dogs, but I have learned to love cats more.
  4. As an undergraduate, I wanted to be an aerospace engineer. Yes, I know, I had high hopes out of high school (good grades in physics and math too). Little did I know I would end up being an educator. However, my mother knew. When I called home distressed that I had switched majors, she simply said, in that wise way mothers have, "I did not want to tell you, but I knew that was not for you."
  5. My first job in college was in the library (circulation clerk, work study). However, back then I had no idea I would become a librarian. I kept that job until I had to do my student teaching.
My few readers know that I am always up for this kind of thing, but I don't usually tag. At this point, I think just about everybody has been tagged. If you have not, and you feel moved, go for it.