Mantis To Basecamp To-do(s)

I just created a handy little script to create todos in basecamp for unresovled tickets in mantis.

You can see the open sourced code/project: http://code.google.com/p/mantis2basecamp-todo/.

This is something we found useful, if you use both tools, you might find it useful as well.

Photos Uploaded

I’ve finally processed and uploaded the photos from my camera.  We’ve got new ones from september, october, and november.  Most are of Poppy, but not all of them.  Some great halloween photos, some camping, and many other occasions where the camera was brought out.

You can see some on the homepage of this site, or poke around flickr at: http://flickr.com/photos/zeroasterisk/

Obama Is Our President, And There Is Much Rejoicing

I feel like I should have something profound to say.  I’ve been a supporter since I picked up one of his books and have grown more so as I’ve found out more and more about Obama and his family and views and campaign.

We watched the results at our friend’s house and were ready to cry together, but thankfully we didn’t have to.  After the last two presidential elections, I was pessimistic and ready to be disappointed - when Obama won I really had to do a couple of reality checks.  I’m still amazed to live in a world where we have elected Obama.

On the whole, I’m very hopeful.  As a country, we are ready for a “new deal” type of paradigm shift and we’ve elected someone capable of effecting that change in a positive and beneficial way.  I keep saying that I feel naive to be so hopeful, but I am. 

There has been a flurry of wonderful information, reflections and projections by many different people about Obama and the upcoming presidency.  Here are some great Fresh Air shows:

Mark Sawyer On Implications Of Obama’s Election - Political
scientist is an Associate Professor of African American Studies and
Political Science at UCLA and the Director of the Center for the Study
of Race, Ethnicity and Politics

The Future Of The Conservative Movement - Former
Republican Congressman Mickey Edwards argues that the conservative
movement has strayed from its founding principles. His book, Reclaiming Conservatism, offers a critique of the movement’s current incarnation — and a blueprint for its future success.

‘Obama’s Challenge’: A Transformative Opportunity Robert Kuttner has reported on elections for more than 30 years. His new book, Obama’s Challenge, looks at the Herculean obstacles the president-elect faces — and what it will take to tackle them

A Recent Letter From My Mom, About Her Visit And Poppy

An email from my Mom who recently visited us. It’s a great recap and update on Poppy, so I’m just pasting in here:

I recommend becoming a grandmother — it’s the best! I have just returned from a week in Louisville with Alan and Anita…and Poppy, which included two Halloween parties, a wedding in Columbus, a long walk in Iroquois park to check out the fall colors, two swimming lessons for Poppy (with Anita), and progress made on Poppy’s room mural by my good friend, Joan Firster and me. Lots of walks, quality time with Poppy, and with Alan and Anita, dining out, dining in, a little gardening, and a delicious pre-Thanksgiving feast at Karen and Bryan’s, plus a tour of their amazing new back yard and brick patio.

Poppy (who was 9 months on Oct. 24, and is holding steady at 19# [60 percentile for weight and measuring 29″ [90 percentile for height: ) is all about mobility these days–pulling herself up to a standing position and holding on while she walks around tables, chairs, sofas, and taller toys, like her current favorite: plastic kitchen appliances (see photo). She climbs the steps without hesitation and when she gets to the top, she’s ready to go down (holding on to your two pointy fingers), and at the bottom, she can hardly wait to turn around and climb up again. I spotted her up and down one day 8 times till I had to stop!

Another fun activity that never gets old is that she likes to dance. If she’s sitting, she’ll rock back and forth on her bottom and sometimes also move her arms. If she’s standing and becomes aware of music, she will bend those knees and be-bop up and down. She’ll dance to silly songs you might sing, even if you’ve forgotten some of the words. It’s all the same to her if she can catch a beat.

Besides mom’s milk, she is eating a variety of fruits and veggies but no sugar, milk, or peanut butter that might get her into trouble. She’s got 2 teeth on the bottom and 4 on the top, and it’s remarkable what those teeth can do. She takes about 3 naps a day, plus car trip naps are extra. Her naps keep everyone on an even keel. Alan and Anita both realize they’re very lucky that Miss Poppy is such a good baby and that she’s healthy and, of course, above average.

Photos include two of Poppy in her Halloween costume: she was a Roller Derby Girl, complete with fishnet stockings. Check out the “skates” Anita made. There are also two of the family at Iroquois Park with fall color all around. Fall color in Louisville seems electric –especially the reds. Beautiful! I also reminded them how lucky they are that all those trees exhibiting fall color are on their neighbors’ lots and not theirs. I know first hand as we have lots and lots of leaves to rake every year, but without the electric colors. (would you believe brown?)

Hard to get back to life at the farmette….without the Poppy sounds, hugs and kisses, and all that Poppy energy. Sigh.

xxxooo
Grannie C

Poppy Update @ 9 Months

We went for Poppy’s nine month old check up today and she is starting to slim down and lengthen. At her 7month visit, she was 19lbs and 27.5inches, and now she is holding steady at 19lbs and up to 29inches. There were no vaccines today - woohoo!

After her visit and a good nap, we were playing downstairs and she took her first preliminary, wobbly steps. It was just 2-3 steps a time or 2, but it was pretty amazing. She wouldn’t repeat it later, but I have a feeling we’re in for a world of trouble soon! She also waved bye bye for the first time today. Seems like she hits a milestone or 2 right before each of Grannie C’s visits…not sure if that means we want her to come more often cause it’s neat, or less often cause it’s all going so quickly!

–(update from Anita)

Poppy The Talker

Anita recently pointed out to me that Poppy has been talking to herself for weeks.  I noticed it and never remarked on it because it seemed normal, but it is worth remarking on.

She will be crawling around, or cruising, or riding in a carrier or playing with a toy… often during a period or play or concentration, she will start babbling really quietly.  A lot like talking to yourself, she just talks away while she’s working on whatever she’s working on.

Yesterday, Anita saw her playing with her kitchenette-toy and she was babbling… but there was something different about it.  According to Anita, Poppy was acting and babbling like she was really playing pretend; putting things into and taking them out of various compartments in the toy, talking to them and the kitchenette and whatever else…. but all very quiet and under her breath.  She’s not talking to us or for us to hear and congratulate her… she’s talking for her own purposes.

Most Of The Poppy Photos From September Are Uploaded

I have uploaded most of the photos from September and the first half of October.  We have another card to process at some point, but this should be the majority.

September

October

This American Life, For The Win - Re: Talking To Our Kids As Much As Possible

364: Going Big

All of TAL is always great, moving, funny, and every other positive adjective I could think of (yes, I’m a fanboy)… but the first act in this show is about baby education and it’s importance…

Paul Tough reports on the Harlem Children’s Zone, and its CEO and president, Geoffrey Canada. Among the project’s many facets is Baby College, an 8-week program where young parents and parents-to-be learn how to help their children get the education they need to be successful. Tough’s just-published book about Geoffrey Canada and the Harlem’s Children Zone is called Whatever It Takes. You can see a slideshow of more photographs from the project here. (30 and 1⁄2 minutes)

It’s worth listening to, but basically, one of the points I was struck by (@~11min) was that one of the main factors in the difference between successfully bright children and those who aren’t. The difference is that successful children heard more words… in the study cited, the “kids who made it” heard 20 million more words in the first 3 years and thus developed a bigger vocabulary early on, and could more easily handle the other basic building blocks of learning. If those building blocks are missing, they are hard to get later. (@~14min). Also “children of professionals” tended to hear 500,000 words of encouragement and only 80,000 words of discouragement, whereas “children of poverty” typically heard the opposite; 80,000 encouragement and 200,000 words of discouragement. (@~17min)

I’m sure all of us parents are doing great on this front, and in fact some of us have talked about this exact topic… but I was struck by the profundity of the topic and am myself encouraged to talk to poppy more, just doing idle tasks and whatnot. 

“now we are sweeping the floor.  now you are eating something random off the floor.  now we are looking out the window.  now we are listening to NPR.”

Hamachi Install Error On Ubuntu - Fixed

I recently re-installed ubuntu (linux) on a server and ran into difficulties installing hamachi.  As it turned out I tried to setup hamachi without installing the tun module first.  I then installed the tun module, but hamachi wouldn’t work.  I eventually figured out that the tuncfg had to be cleaned/make’ed again, after the tun was re-created.

This is the error I was getting:

bash: /sbin/tuncfg: No such file or directory

And this fixed it:

./hamachi-0.9.9.9-20-lnx# cd tuncfg
./hamachi-0.9.9.9-20-lnx/tuncfg# sudo make clean
rm -f tuncfg
./hamachi-0.9.9.9-20-lnx/tuncfg# sudo make
cc     tuncfg.c   -o tuncfg
./hamachi-0.9.9.9-20-lnx/tuncfg# cd ..
./hamachi-0.9.9.9-20-lnx# sudo make install

Copying hamachi into /usr/bin ..
Creating hamachi-init symlink ..
Compiling tuncfg ..
Copying tuncfg into /sbin ..

Hamachi is installed. See README for what to do next.
./hamachi-0.9.9.9-20-lnx# sudo tuncfg

In 1999, A Choice Was Made To Ease Lending Restrictions

NY Times article:
Fannie Mae Eases Credit To Aid Mortgage Lending : September 30, 1999

In a move that could help increase home ownership rates among minorities and low-income consumers, the Fannie Mae Corporation is easing the credit requirements on loans that it will purchase from banks and other lenders.

The action, which will begin as a pilot program involving 24 banks in 15 markets — including the New York metropolitan region — will encourage those banks to extend home mortgages to individuals whose credit is generally not good enough to qualify for conventional loans. Fannie Mae officials say they hope to make it a nationwide program by next spring.

In addition, banks, thrift institutions and mortgage companies have been pressing Fannie Mae to help them make more loans to so-called subprime borrowers. These borrowers whose incomes, credit ratings and savings are not good enough to qualify for conventional loans, can only get loans from finance companies that charge much higher interest rates — anywhere from three to four percentage points higher than conventional loans.

By no means is this the sole cause of anything, but it’s an interesting data-point in looking back to how we got here.

Quick Poppy Accomplishment Update

Poppy has started really reaching for people when she wants to be held.  She also now will usually kiss whomever is holding her.  That kiss is often with an open mouth and extended tounge, but we’re not picky - it counts!

You can tell she wants to stand all the time.  She’s pulling up on stuff and getting her balance and letting go with both hands, usually to fall in a second or on a good day, two… but she keeps her balance well sitting and fairly well standing.  She’ll be walking her soon, to be sure.

Her talking is still just babbling, but it’s come a ways, as well…

A Touching Movie Clip About Selling The Right Message

Money Or Lives, What Do We Care About In This Country?

Something has come to me, in the light of the current financial crisis in this country…

Most people in this country are now aware that we are on the brink of a depression as serious as the one in the 1930s.  People are up in arms, talking to their congressional representatives and it is all over the media.  There’s action (or at least attempted and perhaps misguided action) in our government to fix some of the problems, and we are all sure the sky is falling and things need to be done.

My revalation: We saw nothing like this action and activity when it came to light how corrupt our government already was, in relation to the US invading Iraq.  How self-centered we are, that when our money is directly effected we are all ready to act on something.  Whereas, when the problems are someone else’s most of our country is content to sit back and maybe talk about the subject…

Of course some people marched on Washington and some impotently raged (I’m in the later category), but on the whole, most people didn’t notice that we ruined another country from top to bottom and have done a poor job in putting it back together… oh yeah, and we killed 87,833-95,866 iraqis and lost 4175 US troops (as of today).

There hasn’t been a flurry of activity that I know of on scale with this financial scare.

Sure, our economy is going down in flames for a few years.  We’re looking at a very hard few years, and hopefully a period of some serious and deep rooted changes in our government and country as a whole.  As I see it we are long overdue for both the hard times and the changes… 

I just find it disgusting that our motivation is so self-centered when we had ample opportunity to get disgusted at killing and loosing many lives in the name of stupidity… in the name of oil… in the name of believing that the West could “fix the world” with deadly force.