Musings

Yeah, this is an ore carrier at the Soo Locks, but it fits the topic. Yeah, loosely. But.

They’re not much for resting on their laurels over at Google. Ashlee Vance at the NYTimes reports (blogs) that Google has taken out a patent on a floating data center, essentially allowing them to avoid the real estate market by mooring servers mounted in containers offshore, yet near demand centers (I’m assuming, for example, New York City, LA, and maybe even Chicago and St. Louis).

Just off the top of my head, I have two questions. One: power; as I understand it servers are power hogs, so will they pair the server-barges with wind turbine farms? Two: bad weather—hurricanes, ice storms—seems like the potential for service interruption is extremely high under certain conditions.

Still, interesting.

Posted at 10:31 AM | 2 Comments »

Here’s the label on the 122×56 inch slab….

One lead to the next….

You see, I got to visit the place where our vanity and tub deck stone will be cut. The bonus was I got to be the opinionated client about how to lay out the pieces.

First, we picked out the stone several weeks ago, when we picked out the bathrooom tile. I think it’s called Cherokee marble, and it’s maybe even from a Georgia quarry, so even though we’re raping the landscape for our interior decorating, we’re being the building trades equivalent of “locavores.”*

Today, I met Dick-our-wonderful-contractor over at the stone place. We checked in and received our special costumes for visiting the floor. (It’s been a long time since I was in a factory….)

The lovely Sonya escorted us deep into the cutting area, where we met Stewart, who did the layout. He’s a genius. The stone has two really cool inclusions, and he helped me get one into the vanity top and one into the tub deck, and fit all the other tub deck pieces into the slab such that they will look just right. I think we’ll get a backsplash for the vanity out of it, too!

I’m just so tickled; the pieces are better than I’d hoped!

So that was the first new experience. And here’s the second. I* made a gallery of pictures from my adventure. Check it out below! (Click on one of the thumbnail pictures and you will see it larger, and then can page through the assortment.)

* Not so with the shingles, for example.

** With help from The Guru. Obviously.

Posted at 1:54 PM | 1 Comment »

Right now, the Palin Wikipedia page has a whopping 108 references.

Prediction: cyveilliance will become a commonly used noun. Right now apparently it’s the name of a company* that:

normally trawls the Internet for data on behalf of clients seeking open source information in advance of a corporate acquisition, an important executive hire, or brand awareness. For example, an executive updating his Wikipedia page or resume on Monster.com may be an indication of that person’s plans to change jobs, or even that the company is in financial trouble.

I learned about it in this WashPost article by Brian Krebs (sorry, it’s dated Friday, but I just found it). Krebs begins:

In the days leading up to Republican presidential candidate John McCain’s running mate announcement, political junkies glued to broadcasts and blogs for clues of McCain’s veep choice might have done better to keep a sharp eye on each candidate’s Wikipedia entry.

Just hours before McCain declared his veep choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, her Wiki page saw a flurry of activity, with editors adding details about her approval rating and husband’s employment. Perhaps more tellingly, some of the same users editing her page were almost simultaneously updating McCain’s Wiki entry, adding information dealing with accuracy, sources and footnotes to each.

While Palin was among the least well-known of the potential GOP vice presidential picks – and therefore perhaps the candidate whose Wikipedia page was most in need of updating – her entry saw far more activity than that of Minn. Gov. Tim Pawlenty, probably the next most obscure potential choice.

On August 28, Palin’s entry was updated at least 68 times, with at least an additional 54 changes made to her entry over the preceding five days. In contrast, Pawlenty’s entry received 54 alterations on the 28th, and just 12 changes during the prior five days.

It probably won’t happen that way next time, though….

* Although a simple Google query reveals references to it, their web page doesn’t come up. Interesting….

Posted at 7:33 AM | Comments Off on Cyber-trolling: results

You idiots*!

Buying stuff from spam**!

STOP IT!

* …in the sense that Ben Stiller would use the word in a script….

** “…a study out this month indicates that nearly 30 percent of Internet users confessed to purchasing something from spam e-mail.” Says the Wash Post today.

Posted at 5:52 AM | 1 Comment »

This rebuilding project has been an adventure in learning about new building products.

The smeary stuff on the windows is the modern way to cope with the paint/glass interface. They put this stuff on, and it drys into a skin, then, after the paint is dried, make a clean cut along the glass/frame inteface and peel it away like skin two days after a bad sunburn.

If I’d only known about this magic stuff last summer when I was painting all those windows on the cottage! Well, actually, I have to finish them whenever we get back up there, so, voila! A new technique!*

* Reminder to self: ask The Guys what this most excellent Stuff is called!

UPDATE: it’s called Masking Liquid H2O, and costs something like $60/gallon, at least to our contractor, but it doesn’t take much, so maybe they sell half-pints for those of us with small jobs.

Posted at 4:08 PM | 2 Comments »

We knew we didn’t want to go back to fiberglass (or whatever they use now) batts for insulation, and after much on-line research, and chit-chatting amongst ourselves, we went with Soy Therm 50.

Soy Therm 50 spray-foam insulation is innovative, environmentally friendly and made with Soyol, USSC’s patented, soy-based polyol technology. It is an open-celled, water-blown, rigid polyurethane insulating foam that contains no ozone-depleting chemicals, VOCs, formaldehyde or asbestos. It expands upon application to fill all voids and cracks, and can save significantly on heating and cooling costs. At a density of 1/2 lb. per cu. ft., this is an excellent rigid foam insulation product for commercial and residential use.

…says the United Soybean Board web page….

And this is what it looks like part way through the process. You may be able to tell that the foam is applied against the outside of the house/roof, so everything—at least in new construction—inside of the outside walls would be “interior” relative to the insulation. And, bonus!, this means the house is much better sealed, especially against insects and other critter infestations. Even though we’re just able to have this on part of the upstairs, I think it’ll make a huge difference. Yes, we’re paying more, but I think we’ll be happier with our living situation (yea!, more storage! and more storage that’s insulated!).

Posted at 12:53 PM | Comments Off on Soy Therm 50 Day

Archive photo.

Apparently those memorable footprint fireworks we saw as part of NBC’s coverage of the Opening Ceremonies were fake. There were fireworks, but we were seeing a computer-generated fantasy. I had it wrong.

UPDATE: cute little girl singing was miming; less-cute not-quite-so-little girl was singing in the wings.

Posted at 7:56 AM | 5 Comments »

Old-world techniques for drying newly-washed rugs persist in central Georgia.

Posted at 5:46 PM | Comments Off on Rug handling

Today has been such a shock.

Yesterday this place was overrun with people. We had the regular framing and exterior guys (hammer, bang, thunk, rattle). For the first time, the plumbing crew joined us all, working from both downstairs and upstairs to reconstruct the plumbing for the master bath (partly in the ceiling of the dining room). They were mostly pretty quiet, except for when they knocked out and reinstalled pieces of framing; they also went up and downstairs frequently.*

Anyway, today we had a quick visit from the job-boss, and otherwise, no one. Apparently there’s a slim possibility that a city inspector will come by to check the plumbing, but everyone seems to think there’s a better chance the inspector will show on the next business day. After all, today’s Friday.

Ooops. Update. While I was massaging the photo, the bossman came back with the electrician for one of those here-here-and-here point-and-explain walk-throughs. Been and gone.

JCB’s even off to a lunch date, so it’s just me and the AC.

As to the photo, that’s our shower-to-be, with water standing in it for the inspection. There’s also water standing in the tub, but not visible from this view. I’m told all this is for the inspector. I am hoping mosquitos don’t find the puddles before they’re drained!

* Along with the reconstruction, there are oddities of code the plumbing has to address. One is some kind of a thingy that will make sure that the water going into a tub will never get hot enough to scald someone. I don’t think this applies to the sink or shower faucets, but I may not have been following that closely.

Posted at 12:39 PM | Comments Off on Too quiet?

Under the roof above the stairwell—aren’t you glad you didn’t have to figure this mess out. NB: the lumber is straight despite curving effects from the lens.

We’re thinking about going with Icynene®* foam insulation between the joists up against the roof or exterior walls, which seals the heat out of all interior spaces.

Icynene® insulation and air barrier system creates an airtight seal to reduce random air leakage through the walls and limit the penetration of outdoor allergens and pollutants. 100% water-blown, Icynene improves the quality of the indoor air you breathe. It also reduces the number of indoor pollutants to help you breathe easier and is an environmentally-friendly soft foam insulation.

Anybody had any experience with this stuff? Watch the videos to see the foam expand!

* From the product spec sheet: “Icynene® spray formula is a 1/2 lb density free rise, open celled material.” FYI

Posted at 6:16 PM | Comments Off on Decisions, decisions…