Barbie’s Computer Engineer Degree Program is a Joke

Posted on November 18, 2014 by - Tech

I LOVED Barbie when I was a kid. Barbie could do anything. Barbie was a beach babe. She was a ballerina. She was a rock star. She was a doctor. She was a business professional with her brief case and sensible shoes. She was also glamorous and really gave me my appreciation for glitter. For my daughter, she was a veterinarian.

I don’t normally give kids toys a ton of grief, but when we live in a world where girls are not taken seriously in the computer science field and so very few college freshman applying for degrees in engineering and science are women, this kind of crap cannot be allowed to stand.

It’s not that I’m some kind of computer genius. I am not trying to sell my skills as something that they aren’t. It’s just that if something goes wrong with my computer, I do not need a MAN to fix it for me.… [Read More]

Apple Event Rundown: September 9, 2014

Posted on September 9, 2014 by - Tech

So, I watched the Apple Event this morning, as best I could. The feed was terrible. It wasn’t the sort of caliber of production that I have come to expect from Apple and that terrible feed is what took over Twitter for most of the event. It overshadowed most of the neat stuff that was announced. Here’s a brief rundown of what I managed to catch from the event. More details are available on apple.com

iPhone 6 was announced. It’s a 4.7″ 780p display device with the A8 64 bit CPU. It has a faster GPU than the iPhone 5S. Has the new Retina HD display with better color and more pixel density. The new iSight camera captures Slo-mo video in 1080p. Improved auto-focus. LTE and Wifi download speeds have increased.

iPhone 6+ has all of the above features and includes a 5.5″ 1080p Retina HD display. It also has an improved auto-focus capability that is above and beyond what is on board the iPhone 6.… [Read More]

Apple Event September 9, 2014

Posted on September 9, 2014 by - Tech

An update on the rumor mill before this morning’s event begins:

1. They say that we’re going to see a Phablet from Apple. I will be shocked and will be writing Tim Cook a sternly worded email if this happens. That is a nascent market with a SMALL amount of appeal. How many of you actually OWN a Phablet? Be honest. A friend of mine knows who he is. You, sir, do not count, because you are the only person I know that has one.

2. iWatch. Rumors have been going around about this device for years. Are we gonna see it? Maybe. I can tell you that Apple has something HUGE planned for this event. ABC is covering it live and this never happens. So whatever it is, it’s big.

3. There will be a release date for iOS 8 announced today. A lot of folks have been saying Apple will release it today, but that is not how Apple rolls.… [Read More]

Prayers for Rain

Posted on July 18, 2014 by - News from the Random

All around me in Washington State and Oregon, there are wildfires burning.

The biggest one is about 3 hours away from me by car and is estimated to span 18,000 acres, though firefighters think it’s bigger than that. They’re saying this may be the biggest wildfire the state has ever seen.

The air quality reporting system here sucks. The air quality team says it’s “Unsafe for Sensitive Groups”. I’m not entirely sure how they know since only one of their air quality monitors is actually working. The others are all turned off or busted. What I can tell you is that I’m not an asthmatic. I don’t suffer from migraines. I just have seasonal allergies and my eyes itch and my head aches and my nose runs when I stand outside, all of these are reasons why I don’t go camping. I can’t stand to be around wood smoke for too long.… [Read More]

With Love, Always.

Posted on April 8, 2014 by - Dog Blog

The ad said that she was older and well-trained. There was no photo, but an elderly Labrador in need was something that I couldn’t let get past my notice when my friend sent me the link from Craigslist. I had to help. Convincing my husband wasn’t hard. The ad said “old.” That was all he needed to hear. I had wanted a third dog for quite some time, had a couple of brushes with adopting, but it never worked out. By the time the ad came along, I had settled on the idea that I would not have three because we were in the midst of the Summer of Cheese.

That was what we called the last summer we would get to spend with our beautiful Lucy. She was dying of cancer. I was afraid that adopting another dog and adding stress to her life would kill her. This dog needed help though.… [Read More]