I had to move a bookcase out of the way to get at the wall where our modem cable enters the house. Afterwards I was inspecting the new cat-5 cables, and noticed a little bit of nature happening right near my feet.

A yellow jacket was buzzing on the floor, caught up in a spider web. Also on the web was the owner, possibly a black widow, darting in and out, doing spider things to subdue the yellow jacket and make it more secure in the web. It was pretty fascinating to watch.

I finally got a spraycan of gloss clearcoat and hosed them both down until all movement stopped. Old joke, but true in this case: they died with a beautiful finish.

Posted by: Ted at 04:46 PM | category: Square Pegs
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Just before I left the Air Force, the unit I was assigned to purchased Geodex systems for every officer. Geodex was similar to DayRunner or File-o-Fax and was basically a notebook full of the myriad details that you needed for life.

Alas, Geodex is no more. This truly sucks because it was one of those instances where the implementation lived up to the promise of the original concept.

Anyways, one officer I worked with didnÂ’t want his Geodex because he already had a system that worked for him, so he gave the whole thing to me to use. I loved it and used it for several years, finally giving it up when I could no longer get the annual refills needed to keep it current.

Since then, IÂ’ve relied on post-it notes, various lists jotted here and there and numerous notebooks and steno pads. Nothing very formal, nothing very organized, but good enough to get by with.

Obviously, I’m not one of those people who runs right out to get the latest and greatest technology. I still don’t have a cell phone, let alone a PDA. A PDA always fell under the category of ‘nice to have’ – if I ever had a few hundred dollars to spare. Being married with teenagers in the house, you can imagine how often that happens.

GPS was kind of interesting, but for me the main idea would be using it to triangulate the position of a rocket when it landed, hopefully cutting down the time spent searching for rockets that come down out of sight. The kids and I have always used the human method, where one stays back and marks a distant landmark, then uses hand signals to direct the searchers to the correct line to follow. It works better than guess-and-by-golly, but itÂ’s far from perfect.

GPS always fell into the ‘nice to have’ category too, but my sensible (and better) half is starting to convince me that it’s time to modernize all-around (hint: when convincing me, it helps to use a bigger 2x4).

I’m feeling the need for a PDA, and Garmin makes a model – the Garmin iQue 3600 – that combines the features of a good PDA with everything I need in a GPS system. The damn thing is almost $500.00, but Liz made the point that with the amount of money I’m risking per rocket launch nowadays (motor parts, electronics, chutes, etc), that if the GPS helps me locate a rocket or two that I might otherwise lose, then it’s practically paid for itself right there. Like I said, she’s the sensible member of the team.

Still with me? Cool. This is a long, meandering way to finally get around to asking if you have a PDA or GPS, and if so, what it is and how it works for you? What do you like about it? What do you hate about it? What would you change about it?

DonÂ’t have one? Why not? IÂ’m curious and collecting experiences and opinions here. Thanks.

Posted by: Ted at 11:33 AM | category: SciTech
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Mr. Green puts it perfectly:

Abu Ghraib represents a betrayal of our principles, while this murder [Nicholas Berg - RJ] represents an expression of theirs.

Posted by: Ted at 07:56 AM | category: Square Pegs
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Over at the Llama Butchers, Robert comes out of the geek-closet and lists ten things that he knows way too much about to be considered healthy. Well, I have a few of those niche interests myself, so here's my list:

1. Stonehenge
2. Druids
3. Star Trek paperback novels (original series)
4. WWII Battle of Midway
5. BDSM
6. Car Wars game
7. The Fantasy Trip role-playing game
8. H.P. Lovecraft
9. Hitchcock movies
10. James Garner

Things I know quite a bit about but not enough to go on that list:

1. Cooking
2. Gardening
3. Hockey
4. 60's & 70's tennis
5. Cary Grant movies
6. Movie musicals
7. Woodworking, cabinetry and carpentry
8. Oakland/LA/Oakland Raiders
9. San Francisco Giants

Robert also asks that you run with this and post your own list, however long or short, on your own place if you have one. Feel free to leave it in my comments if you'd rather.

Posted by: Ted at 06:15 AM | category: About Ted
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1 You're an expert on BDSM? Whoda thunk it?

Posted by: Victor at May 12, 2004 01:55 PM (L3qPK)

2 Long story. Never forget, I'm boring.

Posted by: Ted at May 12, 2004 02:28 PM (blNMI)

3 BDSM... Okay Dad, I know your wierd.. But I think this is a new level for you... And something I did not want to know.

Posted by: Mookie at May 12, 2004 04:11 PM (ZjSa7)

4 And how do *you* know what that means?

Posted by: Ted at May 12, 2004 04:35 PM (ZjSa7)

5 LOL, maybe i should leave the room so the two of you can chat.

Posted by: annika at May 13, 2004 02:27 PM (zAOEU)

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My wife once bought me a bumper sticker for one of my old beater vehicles. It read "Vulcan Science Academy - the logical education".

I put it on my back bumper. Upside down.

Posted by: Ted at 06:03 AM | category: Square Pegs
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A new live action style movie due out in July. Be sure to watch both trailers, because the US and international versions are different.

Thanks to Doug Pratt for sending this link to me! And if you go to Doug's site, you should order one of his cool new Freedom 'hoody' sweatshirts or 'rocket scientist' t-shirts. Both are Mookie-approved!

Posted by: Ted at 11:45 AM | category: Cult Flicks
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This one calls for teams to build a rocket that deploys a remotely-controlled rover vehicle.

Posted by: Ted at 06:05 AM | category: Rocketry
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I'm not bragging, I'm just good at non-vegetable gardening. There are a few pictures of this year's work (so far - it's early yet) in the extended entry. more...

Posted by: Ted at 05:21 AM | category: Family matters
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Here's the list of visiting guests at the Team America Rocketry Challenge finals to be held weekend after next (link over on the right column):

"Rocket Boy" author Homer Hickam, U.S. Senator Mike Enzi, NASA Associate Administrators Craig Steidle and Adena Loston, Marshall Space Flight Center Director David King, NASA astronauts Jay Apt and Charlie Walker, among other dignitaries.

Posted by: Ted at 09:15 PM | category: Rocketry
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I've been working on this as time allowed over the last few days, so if you find some of these links are a little... old, they're not, they're nicely aged like a fine wine. Yeah, that's it.

Fellow Munuvian Linda of Auteriffic has an interesting discussion going on about porn. If youÂ’ve read Rocket Jones for any length of time, you know I peruse the naughty bits on occasion, and then cheerfully pass it along to you. ThatÂ’s not what Linda is doing, sheÂ’s looking at it from a more intellectual standpoint, and the discussion is excellent. Go check it out.

P.S. For anyone expecting to find my input there, itÂ’s not. IÂ’ve got some things to say, but havenÂ’t really had a chance to sit back and sort it out in my mind. This is a subject where itÂ’s all too easy to lose sight of your original point, and I donÂ’t want to do that. Maybe this week, if not then IÂ’m afraid itÂ’ll be too late to toss my two cents in.

Over at Say Uncle, Thibodeaux passes on a link and a joke. The excerpt from the linked story is priceless!

I’ve heard of LittleTinyLies before, but there are only so many hours I can waste at work spend surfing the ‘net, so I’d never visited.

Big mistake on my part. This guy is on a BBQ binge lately, and some of his posts are so mouth-wateringly wonderful itÂ’s damn near pornographic [another porn reference - what gives?]. Ignore some of the unholy abominations he experiments with (donut lasagne?) and stick with the 'dead beasts on fire' recipes. Yum!!!

Annika has probably already seen this (and frightened co-workers as she suddenly burst into laughter throughout the day at the mere thought of), but she seldom misses an opportunity to slam the American Skankwoman. So just in case she missed it, here's Britney Spears in her natural state, courtesy of Wizbang!

Do you love Scrappleface? Are you a regular Onion reader? Have you tried Broken Newz yet?

Thank J-Walk Blog for this link to 40 years of Astounding/Analog covers. I read Analog faithfully for years from the early 70Â’s, and was introduced to war gaming thanks to a little ad inside one of their issues. What was that company again... SSI - Strategic Simulations, Inc? I need to google that up.

He also linked to the Read Print library, with thousands of online books. This is going to be fun to go through.

Loren at Civilization Calls links to this interesting phenomena in Africa - fairy circles - that as far as anyone can tell, may actually be created by fairies.

Yet another Munuvian, Rae, talks about her Mother's Day weekend and teaching her kids life lessons about work and money. We've tried to do the same with our kids, and I think we've been successful. Mookie bought her own PC with babysitting money (she was tired of having the old hand-me-down machine), and oldest daughter Robyn bought her own first car. They've learned that saving money and working towards your goals is worthwhile, because you tend to appreciate what you have more when you earn it.

Speaking of Mookie (aka Rachael), her internet connection has been shut down for a couple of weeks. When we had new windows installed in the house, the old cable was removed and we've run two new lines into the upstairs. Unfortunately, the new cable we dropped into her bedroom isn't working, so one evening this week I've got to head back up into the attic and we'll try the second cable run and hope that one works. She's been making do with scrounging time on Mom's PC.

Short. Sweet. Absolutely true. Thanks for the laugh, John.

Bigwig at Silflay Hraka posts the latest "Not the Prudie" advice column link, and it's a keeper. My favorite bit:

A ballroom dancer who's a great listener, puts other people first, and seeks advice from his women friends. I'm not saying you're gay, but everyone else is.

Dustbury remains one of my favorite daily stops. Here he opens a discussion about President Bush's policies. I get involved. Head on over and point and laugh at your host (that would be me) being shredded intellectually (I anticipate this last bit).

Update: Maybe I'm not an idiot. People seem to be agreeing with me, which probably means they're talking about me behind my back. That's ok too, it's better for my self-esteem.

All right, if I wait much longer to post this links might start expiring. Enjoy.

Posted by: Ted at 08:14 PM | category: Links
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1 Yep, Dottie is still writing for the Weekly World News. This week she's brilliant in telling someone how to handle those women at the grocery store who wait until everything is rung up before taking their purse of their freakin' shoulder, much less have their wallet open.

Posted by: Victor at May 11, 2004 07:53 AM (L3qPK)

2 The wargaming ad was probably for SPI (Simulations Publications Inc). Jim Dunnigan was a chief contributor, and his Strategy Page is still a good resource. SPI got eaten by TSR, who got eaten by WoC, who got eaten by Hasbro...

Not to be confused with SSI, the makers of various computer wargames (since eaten by Ubisoft), or SSG, an Australian maker of various award-winning computer wargames (and whose name came first).

Another Australian computer wargame (as opposed to game) maker is Panther Games. Their new 'Highway to the Reich' game is the most revolutionary thing to happen to simulations since the hex grid. As a simulation, it's not perfect, just the best in existence. As a game - a matter of taste. But go read the reviews.

Disclaimer : I had something to do with the development of it.

Posted by: Alan E Brain at May 11, 2004 11:04 AM (HZApf)

3 Yes! SPI!!!! They used to do little quickie-games of obscure battles too, as introductory pieces. IIRC I had one of theirs which was space warfare on the strategic scale, where travelling between the systems took months... it's been a long time since I've thought about some of these. I feel another nostalgia post coming on.

Posted by: Ted at May 11, 2004 02:41 PM (blNMI)

4 Thanks for the ping. A lot of people have asked for some time with it, which is why I keep bumping it. I'm really pleased with the responses I've gotten. I wish I could have been at that forum they held in CA; which the post was based upon.

Posted by: Linda at May 11, 2004 04:39 PM (AWAw8)

5 I remember Little Tiny Lies. He had hit my cat's page a few times. I could tell he really was skeeved out by it.

Posted by: Dawn at May 11, 2004 10:34 PM (Ev/7m)

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Not quite, but closer than you might think.

When folks think about American Bald Eagles, they often picture the birds soaring through majestic mountains and nesting atop barren, craggy peaks far above the treeline.

What you might not know is that there is a bald eagle preserve in northern Virginia, about 30 miles south of Washington, D.C. Set along both shores of the Potomac river, this preserve is home to up to 50 bald eagles at a time and has three active nests. George Washington himself may have watched an eagle or two, since his Mount Vernon home overlooks the Potomac river just north of today's preserve. It's not unheard of for boaters on the Rappahanock river to spot an eagle circling lazily overhead as eagles continue to make a comeback from their endangered status.

Much of the preserve's land remains in private ownership, and not open to the public, but there are also several parks where hiking, boating, and camping are allowed.

You may remember when President Clinton released an adolescent eagle named Freedom at July 4th ceremonies in 1996. The eagle flew directly over an Osprey nest, and the territorial osprey (four of 'em) attacked Freedom and knocked him into the water. Freedom was rescued by the Coast Guard and re-released a couple of weeks later after recovering from minor injuries.

Posted by: Ted at 06:36 AM | category: Square Pegs
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Here's a good explanation of what aerospike rocket motors are all about.

There are pictures here, and if you select the medium or large sizes, you can really study the detail of the aerospike design (if that sort of thing floats your boat).

The names and organizations involved are familiar to rocketeers, because this is the kind of cutting-edge experimentation that some of us get involved with. Here's the inside scoop from Chuck Rogers, one of the people involved, as posted on the Rec.Models.Rockets newsgroup (links added):

Cesaroni Technology Incorporated did a great job on the structural design and fabrication of the aerospike. The aerospike retrofits onto an O5100 motor in place of the conventional conical nozzle. BlackSky Research built the Optimal 168 rocket, and ran the launch operations for the flights.

The aerospike is a centered Prandtl-Meyer all-external expansion design. It delivered 97% of ideal efficiency in ground test (exceeding historical Rocketdyne data), and theoretically would deliver the same high efficiency from sea level to vacuum flight conditions.

The rocket flights were to demonstrate operation of the aerospike in flight, and to measure installation effects compared to the uninstalled ground static firings. CFD was run not only for the aerospike hot gas flowfield, but for the combined rocket and aerospike plume flowfield.

This is the most highly instrumented high power/experimental rocket ever flown. In addition to highly accurate accelerometers and pitch, yaw, and roll rate sensors, the rocket used a conic nosecone with a built-in Flush Air Data System (FADS) (like a pitot tube), calibrated with CFD and cone pressure tables. This was the first inflight direct aerodynamic measurement of angle of attack on a model, high power, or experimental/amateur rocket.

Blacksky Research coordinated the development of the aerospike nozzles and solid rocket motors, provided overall project management on the contractor side, and really helped refine the whole concept of using large high power rockets for advanced flight test research. All at a low cost relative to normal government aerospace projects.

Composites, ferrous and non-ferrous alloys, a little bit of graphite and a pinch of tungsten.

Well, it turns out that the tungsten tip on the aerospike is REALLY SHARP. While walking around the rocket as it was mounted on the transfer cart I got "speared" by it. It put a tear in my shirt, but it didn't break the skin. It did not draw blood!

For this experiment we wanted a "pure" spike that went all the way to a sharp tip. For an "operational" aerospike there is predicted to be very little performance loss for up to a 25% reduction in the spike length.

You'd want at least some minimal truncation to avoid that VERY sharp tip.

Which was suggested by CTI, but again, for the "purity" of the experiment we wanted a sharp tip.

Posted by: Ted at 05:22 AM | category: SciTech
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They won the world hockey championship for the second year in a row.

The US took the bronze.

Posted by: Ted at 08:17 PM | category: Square Pegs
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This redefines 'task-lighting', eh?

A U.S.-Israeli laser designed to protect northern Israel from missile attacks downed its largest rocket to date during a test over the southern New Mexico desert, the Army said Friday.

Posted by: Ted at 07:06 PM | category: SciTech
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(in the extended entry - click where it says "light this candle...") more...

Posted by: Ted at 06:24 AM | category: Square Pegs
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I warned you here that I was going to watch a couple more offerings from Seduction Cinema. By the end of last month, I'd recorded Play-Mate of the Apes and Gladiator Eroticus. Boy howdy.

Like I originally stated, the formula is to spoof a popular movie, and to fill it with lesbian softcore porn. Part of what makes these films work is that the original storylines are closely followed, so the movies tend to actually have plots.

But face it - and I can't believe I'm actually saying this (my 'guy' membership will be revoked for sure) - there is such a thing as too much lesbian porn. Watching one of these movies is fun, but two is borderline boring, and three is serious overkill. Maybe it's because it was the first one I saw, but I still think Lord of the G-Strings is the best of the three I've seen. Play-Mate of the Apes was fun and funny, but there were way too many enhanced bustlines for my taste. The overstuffed petrified-chest look just doesn't do it for me.

Now that this peculiar little itch has been scratched, I can get back to my beloved obscure crappy horror movies. I do have some interesting flicks on my list to be reviewed, but with springtime here my movie time is seriously curtailed. We'll get to 'em all in time.

Posted by: Ted at 12:05 AM | category: Cult Flicks
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I talked about Dairy Queen's new Flamethrower Burger commercial here. Have you seen it yet? Well, thanks to Euth, here's the link to see it online. He didn't leave contact info, so the good deed counts double.

Posted by: Ted at 05:52 PM | category: Links
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What do you mean it wasn't real?

Posted by: Ted at 11:23 AM | category:
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1 I think I found your hot-button.

I feel oddly satisfied, because it's not often a joke causes such passion to pour forth. You *did* get the joke, didn't you?

Posted by: Ted at May 09, 2004 07:56 PM (ZjSa7)

2 I didn't get the joke. Was there one?

Posted by: dc at May 10, 2004 03:29 PM (3nez/)

3 Ouch! I thought there was a joke there. Oh well, it wouldn't be the first time I said something nobody else thought was funny.

Posted by: Ted at May 10, 2004 08:36 PM (ZjSa7)

4 Fuck you TED.MUST BE A KENNEDY.

Posted by: kill michael moore at July 28, 2004 09:04 PM (trQtA)

5 FUCK MICHAEL MOORE AND KERRY EDWARDS! FUCK THEM
AMERICAN HATERS! FUCK THAT!!!

Posted by: Julie at July 29, 2004 01:29 AM (aCj7h)

6 FUCK Michael Moore, he's a piece of shit Go Bush and fuck KERRY

Posted by: Joe at August 01, 2004 04:59 PM (h2L1r)

7 SHUT UP BASTARDS ALL OF YOU I AM GOD AND I WILL NUKES U ALL SOON

Posted by: aaa at August 29, 2004 06:46 PM (+RhBt)

8 Michael Moore, you all take sides, for, or against him, he is simply a one-dimensional, piece of shit who goes against all he says he believes, only finding hope in the saviour Kerry. He feeds on mis-information, and the mis-informed, for without them, he would be nothing. He is the media, at least in his own way, feeding shit to the masses to consume, to call the truth. One person's opinion does not constitute the truth, you choose to believe a man who is not an American, who is reaping the finacial rewards of his fantasy, I tire of people who cannot think as an individual, you who would condemn simply because of political party affiliation.

Posted by: Anit-Michael at October 23, 2004 03:26 AM (QVCsG)

9 FUCK MICHAEL MOORE. AMERICAN HATING DOUCH BAG WHINING LOOSE STOOL COMMIE BEEATCH. CWO (USN Ret.)

Posted by: David F at November 04, 2004 01:23 PM (/hs21)

10 I HATE THAT FUCKING BASTARD! "It's good that saddam is gone" .... "nobody should have voted for the war" ... FUCKING RETARDED BASTARD. DOUCHEBAG

Posted by: michael is a fuck-tard at December 17, 2004 03:41 AM (sX7bN)

11 David Duke is a malignant narcissist. He invents and then projects a false, fictitious, self for the world to fear, or to admire. He maintains a tenuous grasp on reality to start with and the trappings of power further exacerbate this. Real life authority and David Duke’s predilection to surround him with obsequious sycophants support David Duke’s grandiose self-delusions and fantasies of omnipotence and omniscience.

Posted by: David Duke is a malignant narcissist. at February 23, 2005 03:39 AM (QN43x)

12 Fuck Moore, Go Bush! Can you believe that son of a bitch is making a sequel to Fareinheit 911! Fuck him. Let's make one on him Fucking Fatass!!

Posted by: M at March 31, 2005 11:27 PM (QSp+N)

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Paul had a little run-in with his HOA. I commiserated in his comments and asked if I'd ever told him the story of the meteor that almost crashed through my roof.

Turns out I had told that story here. Damn, I can't be running out of material already.

Posted by: Ted at 09:32 AM | category: Links
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This appeared in the Wall Street Journal yesterday. Since they require subscription to access, the article is included below (in the extended entry) as posted on the Rec.Models.Rockets newsgroup.

The hobby rocketry community is small and active, so I've talked to most of the rocketeers or shopped at the hobby shops mentioned in the article. This is the perfect example of Homeland Security acting in a way that will not actually make anyone safer, but they can point to it as an example of ways that they're working to protect us. Justifying their existance is what I call it.

For the most part, the article is fair and reasonably accurate. The main point missed though isn't the cost of the new permits, it's the unreasonable storage requirements which are damn near impossible to comply with. more...

Posted by: Ted at 06:51 AM | category: Rocketry
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