Monthly Archives: September 2013

Sep 23 2013

My Knee-Jerk Review: The Pebble Watch

ImageI got my Pebble watch today!   Right out of the box, I felt the quality and the care of craftsmanship put into this item.  It’s obvious that the designers of the watch cared as much foe aesthetics and ergonomics as they did about functionality.  It’s an absolutely beautiful, functional device that compliments any professional.  The black version, which I got, goes with any wardrobe and is as much stylish as it is sedate.

While I won’t go into too many details without a video of my own, I wanted to show you what I did with mine, and how I like it.  The video reviews I post here are VERY realistic and pretty much spot-on.

Video Reviews:

– Engadget: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGzdqqkQ0IA
– TechSmartt: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z42vxp1ywMU
– SoldierKnowsBest: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOVX00e9_oc
– Selim Akca: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdgIz8X8Qsk

Of course, I had to have my Star Trek watch-face.  😀

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Sep 13 2013

Humanity has finally left the nest of the Solar System…

Early Thursday, NASA announced that the Voyager 1 probe has been confirmed as leaving the reaches of the Solar System, and is now travelling in Interstellar Space.

After 36 years and 7 days, human creation has finally left the cradle of our solar system.  Could this be just the spark America and indeed, the nations of Earth need to jump-start our interest in joining together to accomplish a larger goal for ourselves, and maybe begin a new, 21st century space race,  With well over a decade of life expectancy, the craft continues to operate healthy, and takes ten hours from Tx time to Rx time with the Deep Space Array.  Now that we’re literally in uncharted waters… what will Voyager continue to teach us?

Sitting in my Asian Politics class at Eastern Michigan University, I read the news… and realized that this was a moment in our history analogous to Columbus discovering the new world…  or Neil Armstrong landing on the moon.

Our creation is finally “out there.”   Go, Starship Voyager.

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Sep 3 2013

Repo the Wrong House — and No Criminal Charges?

Nikki Bailey, a homeowner in West Virginia, came home to a startling discovery — moving men were in the process of cleaning out her home, because a bank had ordered it repossessed.  Like many foreclosures and home repossessions, this is an all-to-familiar story in the wake of the Great Recession.  But there’s a minor detail to this story:

MIss Bailey paid off her mortgage: 25 years ago.

While continuing to clean out her home, the representatives of the repossession company, CTM Industries, refused to disclose the name of the bank who ordered the repossession, and continued to clean out the home, taking everything she owned to the local trash dump.

A lifetime of memories in possessions taken away and virtually irretrievable, with the exception of some objects, such as a chest of drawers.  Family momentos, pictures,  and even a “Teacher of the Year” award from her local school district — all gone, thrown away by the offending company as if it were simple trash.

It turns out, CTM WAS repossessing the wrong house.  Her address on Godby Heights was over ten miles away from the home SUPPOSED to be foreclosed upon, on Godby Street, in Logan.

Even when the company admitted the mistake of address, the company still refuses to give the name of the Bank that ordered the repossession, as contacting the Bank would go a long way toward finding out who’s responsible for the botched address.  When contacted by local media, CTM refused to answer questions, and hung up.

Even more disturbing: the local prosecutor has said that criminal charges against either party (The Bank or CTM) is “unlikely,” because this was a “mistake.”

While civil and charges and penalties are still on the table, a Kanawha County Prosecutor, Mark Plants says “It’s a lot like taking someone’s luggage at the airport. If I take a black bag, a black piece of luggage, get home and realize this is not my bag — that’s not a crime. That’s an accident.”

Is it the same thing though?  Is the simple accident of taking similar luggage akin to breaking and entering, illegally, and burglarizing the home in question?  Isn’t there a procedure to follow that ensures the CORRECT home is Foreclosed and Repossessed properly?  And indeed, when done so legally, can the lender order all the stuff inside, which the Bank has no title to, simply removed and discarded like trash, without even the opportunity of the owner to reclaim it?

Could this also be an example of big money being immune from the laws of good order that the rest of us are required to follow?  Another example of how Banks were not held accountable for being responsible for the Great Recession?

Definitely disturbing.

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Sep 1 2013

An Albert Einstein Funny…

There’s a story about how Dr. Albert Einstein was traveling to Universities in his car, delivering lectures on his theory of relativity.

During one journey, his driver remarked “Dr. Einstein, I have heard you deliver that lecture about 30 times. I know it by heart and bet I could give it myself.”

“Well, I’ll give you the chance”, said the good Doctor.  “They don’t know me at the next University, so when we get there, I’ll put on your cap, and you introduce yourself as Dr. Einstein and give the lecture.”

The driver delivered Einstein’s lecture without a single mistake. When he finished, he started to leave, but one of the professors stopped him and asked a complex question filled with mathematical equations and formulas. The driver thought fast. “The answer to that problem is so simple,” he said.

“I’m surprised you have to ask me that! In fact, to show you just how elementary it is, I’m going to ask my DRIVER to come up here and answer that question!”