“Done With Apple-Picking Now”

This quote is prominently and professionally carved into the base of a picnic table in China Camp State Park north of San Francisco.

A bit unusual.  The first thing that came to mind was that it was some kind of negative critique of Apple Computers. I was deeply saddened when I realized, instead, that it is a direct quote from one of my favorite poems from my favorite poet, Robert Frost.  How did I not recognize it right away?

Maybe I’ve been here too long.

“One can see what will trouble
This sleep of mine, whatever sleep it is.
Were he not gone,
The woodchuck could say whether it’s like his
Long sleep, as I describe its coming on,
Or just some human sleep.”

The Secret In’N'Out Menu of Technology

I just discovered the ability to use ClearType to make text look smoother and beautiful on the computer screen.  If you use an older PC like me, do yourself a favor and turn it on.  It’s like switching to HD for text, and I can’t believe it’s been hidden from me for so long.

Another beautiful secret menu item is the 30-second fast-forward button on the Comcast remote control (which you have to program yourself).  Almost as wonderful as the not-s0-secret but oft overlooked instant replay button.

Now for a burger, animal style extra toast with some well-done fries.

Statusitis

Statusitis
The inability to stop yourself from thinking about what you’re doing in the third person and wondering if it’s interesting enough to post on Facebook.

E.g.  As Josh picked a large ball of lint from his belly button, he thought to himself, “Josh is picking a large ball of lint from his belly button.”

someecards are cool

Highly recommend this site for eCards for all occasions (“when you care enough to hit send.”)  Be warned, however, that many of their cards are very R-rated.

iTunes’ Genius Sidebar pretty much is

I know the technorati will say I’m late to the party (at least when measured in “internet time”), but I’ll still throw some props out to iTunes’ (relatively) new Genius Sidebar, not to be confused with the Genius Bar in the Apple stores.

Pick a song in your library, and the Genius Sidebar will create a related mix of 25 songs from your library.  It also recommends other songs you don’t own yet.  Along with Pandora, it’s a good way to search for those diamonds in the massive rough of modern music.

Google maps is depressing

Near my childhood home there were thick woods, impenetrable in summer and close enough even in winter to block out whatever might lay beyond them.  And there was the rub – what lay beyond them.  I had no idea.  For all I knew, those woods stretched for hundreds of miles.  You might venture in and never come out, or you might stumble right into another world.  It was a great mystery and, as such, would always inspire awe and joy in me.  Especially in summer, and especially at night, when forests get their magic on.

Until Google maps.  Now I see from the satellite image that, after just a few hundred feet, those woods stop at an office building.  And a parking lot.

I suppose it’s nice to know there’s a shortcut to the drugstore.  Too bad they had to kill my magic forest to find out.

2007’s greatest innovation

I’d probably have to go with the Instant Replay button on my Comcast remote control. Punch it and you instantly jump back about 10 seconds.

Perfect for sports highlights caught with just the corner of your eye or indicated only by the roar of the crowd as you look up from your HungryMan to see you missed it. It’s also an excellent solution to otherwise ill-fated attempts to hit the “Play” button at exactly the right time after fast-forwarding through commercials.

In fact, it’s so good, I find myself reaching for it when I’m not even watching television, wishing I could apply it to the car radio, conversations, that image of the cute girl getting on the bus…

My computer keeps wishing me a happy birthday

It’s a sad state of affairs when birthday well-wishes from friends barely outnumber those from pre-programmed online services of which I’m a member, though I don’t know specifically whether it means I need more friends or fewer online services, or if the “personalization” of the web has just begun to satirize itself.

Or maybe I should just be thankful that Facebook wants me to be happy.