Ok, this is really just an excuse to put a link up here as I won’t remember it later, but I’m still amazed that someone actually does… pencil reviews. I shouldn’t be – there seems to be a site on the internet for everything.
Anyway, I’m mostly putting this up here to remind myself about it later. I’ve always wanted to know more about the different types of pencil lead and this guy seems to be a good source to learn.
Kevin and I went to a Scotch tasting party. It was the first time I’ve had distilled alchohol. Kevin was more savvy and knew what he was getting into.
Everyone brought a bottle of whatever they felt like bringing, as long as it was single malt scotch. (Kevin brought a peated single malt Irish whiskey* (rulebreaker)). When all the guests were assembled and the knowledgeable host had sorted them by peaty-ness, this was what was on the table:
Glenmorangie
Dalwhinnie
Balvenie
Bowmore
Connemara (Kevin’s)
The Macallan
Laphroaig
*Scotch is “Whisky”. Irish is “Whiskey”. We think.
They only have a demo version up and playable with the promise of having more in the works. Still, it makes for a great way to waste.. err, I mean, allocate time.
Really, it is just here to take up time while waiting for code to get pushed out.. yeah.
My only gripe: I’d love to actually listen to the ‘completed’ music before the next level loads.
Thought I’d let everyone know that Kevin has finished all of his holiday coffee. He still has the gift certificate, which is going to be redeemed soon. But if anyone wondered if coffee was really a used and useful gift item …. it is. It truly is.
(he says that this year he went through the coffee supplies more quickly because he’s lost access to workplace coffee. So this is not a typical year. So you know.)
Somebody had *way* too much time on their hands. Or they were paid to do it.
Either way, worth a quick look:
Inauguration Headlines
… because I think that resolutions end up being something that is too easy to break (and, once broke, it’s all over).
A goal, however, is something that you can keep working for if you fall off the wagon from time to time.
Anybody have any you’d not mind sharing this year?
At least so far as the normal Christmas Eve gifts are concerned.
From talking to everyone, most folks are having a bit of trouble finding their intended items and getting them mailed off this year. This is partially (ok, mostly) due to me not getting The Theme set at Thanksgiving. For some reason I wasn’t able to think about the Eve gift around then; small children demanding attention or somesuch.
Anyway, I believe if everyone is able to get things aquired/mailed by Friday we should be good to go for New Years Eve as our gift period this year.
Well, this is my year. Thank you to Ramona to reminding me that I need to get on it.
Assignments(1) are as follows:
Chris got Luke
Christina got Kevin
Ramona got Nelia
Kevin got Christina
Luke got Ramona
Nelia got Chris
Mission: Zodiac Signs.
You are encouraged to think beyond the literal. Aquarius is the Water Bearer. You could send a bucket. You could send a water bottle. Or you should send a small shovel, to help move obstacles in the way of the flow. Or maybe an ice cube tray, to help keep their load cool. Be creative, but keep it tied back to the Zodiac sign.
I know the following off the top of my head:
Chris : Gemini
Christina: Capricorn
Ramona: Pisces
Nelia: Cancer
If I got one wrong, let me know. If you know others, let me know and I’ll fill them in.
Note 1: For future reference, you can use this page to come up with people assignments: christmas_assign_page It will generate a new round of assignments every time you visit. Also, due to not spending that much time on it, every now and then it might not generate the full list of people.
So, Ramona, you say you want a garlic thing, something to chop garlic. Do you mean a commonly available garlic press or one of the rather clever garlic choppers? BE SPECIFIC!
Mom and I joined Kiva 1 year ago today.
Ramona’s profile
Mom’s profile
Between the two of us …
With our individual $25 contributions, we’ve joined forces with over 620 people from 26 different countries to send over $25,000 to 33 developing businesses in 20 countries. Almost $6,000 of that has already been repaid.
Feels pretty amazing.
Actually, Kiva always feels pretty amazing.
I’m connected to the world now. I can make a difference in people’s lives, not in big grand gestures, but from one person to one person. I’m part of an international community that is out there, on the ground, making a positive impact on people’s individual lives.
There’s a way for me to directly help someone in Kenya (Geoffrey Onyango) when they’re being rocked by election violence. I care about Kenya’s election violence because I know someone (Mary Otieno) in the middle of it. I can address immigration concerns by helping someone in Mexico (José Labrada) improve their living conditions.
(all of these examples are taken from my and mom’s portfolios .. I say “I” but that’s a generalized “I” .. some of these are technically mine, some are technically mom’s, but for the sake of the post, it’s all generic)
I have seen the amazingly creative businesses out there around the world – photography and film; embroidery, fashion design, iron working, even a wine bar.
And I’m part of these businesses.
There are now Kiva teams, for the lenders to get together. We have a team – Part of the Solution. There are teams for Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Mormons, Catholics, and Atheists. There are teams for businesses, schools, people celebrating weddings or 40th birthdays or how much they all like pets, cats, or bicycling.
And I have something in common with all these diverse groups. We all have loans together.
So there’s this sense of being part of a very specific and individual interaction – I am loaning $25 to Kan Pheap in Cambodia to buy a cow. And then I step back .. and there’s the sense of being part of something much, much larger. Kiva itself is only 3 years old. And in 3 years, 350,000 people from everywhere have banded together and have sent 47 million dollars abroad. That’s not exactly “micro”finance.