Isaac Garcia's Blog

Brain Dump

I write this personal blog to, literally, declutter my mind.  I've been keeping a running list of ideas, links and topics that I've been wanting to blog about but just haven't had the time to do it.

So, this post is a brain dump of things - I just need to declutter my mind.  I can't stand it any longer:

• John Paczkowski Revisits the Mysterious Deep Sea Cable Cuts.
  [I particularly liked the image of Godzilla!]
• An Astonishingly Interesting Interview with George Clooney (Time Magazine).
  [I really enjoyed this article - and I'm not a George Clooney Fan.  I guess it had something to do with the 'insider's view' into his persona.  Good airplane reading.]
• A Fascinating Summary of Quantum Mechanics (YouTube)
  [The Uncertainty Principle.  A good example of why predictions based on facts don't always come true.  The universe doesn't work the way you would expect it to.]
• Learning To Live Like An Early Bird
  ["Indeed, sleep deprivation has been shown to impair memory, weaken the immune system, slow metabolism and spur insulin resistance, a precursor to diabetes." I've been recently fascinated with sleep-cycles and productivity.]
• The Science of Sleep
  [60 Minutes on Sleep and how we need more than we think.  Sleep as a competitive edge and productivity booster is an interesting idea to me.]
• Chart of Economic Prognosticators 1927-1933
  [Financial forecasting is doomed.  No one knows anything.
• Why The US is Collapsing
  [An opinionated and somewhat conspiratorial look at the US economy.]
• Ricardo Semler's Management Style
  [How the Brazilian CEO Does It Differently]
• Theories About a Fourth Matrix Movie
  [Long, but interesting read]
• A Man's Ability To Withstand Freezing Temperatures
  [Submerged in Ice Water Does Nothing To This Man!]
• David Mamet:  Why I Am No Longer a Brain Dead Liberal
  [From the Village Voice?!]
• Ten Things You Don't Know About The Milky Way Galaxy
  [Just Interesting]
• A Beautiful Collection of Rainbow Pictures
  [Stunning]
• Did You Know That Laser Printers Print Identifying Marks?
  [This is Big Brother Stuff]
• I believe that Helium is the real reason why the US (and Google) suddenly want to go back to the moon.
  [I have more to write on this topic]
• I love my Sonos!

Birth Of An Ocean

So I guess everytime a hole in the earth appears it means that its the birth of an ocean?

Gimmie a break.  Why do they have to exaggerate everything so much?

Los Angeles Sunset

Even if its a rat-hole, LA can have some stunning sunsets.  I arrived just before dark, looked out the front window and quickly reached for the camera. (click the thumbnails below to view a larger image)

If You Date My Daughter

Ok, so what if my daughter is only two years old?  These are the things the keep me up at night...(not whether or not Central Desktop (my company) will succeed, or whether or not I'm working too many hours, or whether to choose paper over plastic at the check out line), rather, I worry about how I'm going to deal with the realities of my daughter dating?

Thanks to Jack Yoest, I've got the solution.

Ten Simple Rules For Dating My Daughter

Rule One:
If you pull into my driveway and honk you'd better be delivering a package, because you're sure not picking anything up.      

Rule Two:
You do not touch my daughter in front of me. You may glance at her, so long as you do not peer at anything below her neck. If you cannot keep your eyes or hands off of my daughter's body, I will remove them.

Rule Three:
I am aware that it is considered fashionable for boys of your age to wear their trousers so loosely that they appear to be falling off their hips. Please don't take this as an insult, but you and all of your friends are idiots. Still, I want to be fair and open minded about this issue, so I propose his compromise: You may come to the door with your underwear showing and your pants ten sizes too big, and I will not object. However, in order to ensure that your clothes do not, in fact, come off during the course of the date with my daughter, I will take my electric nail gun and fasten your trousers securely in place to your waist.

Rule Four:
I'm sure you've been told that in today's world, sex without using a "barrier method" of some kind can kill you. Let me elaborate, when it comes to sex, I am the barrier, and I will kill you.

Rule Five:
It is usually understood that in order for us to get to know each other, we should talk about sports, politics, and other issues of the day. Please do not do this. The only information I require from you is when you expect to have my daughter safely back at my house, and the only word I need from you on this subject is "early."

Rule Six:
I have no doubt you are a popular fellow, with many opportunities to date other girls. This is fine with me as long it is okay with my daughter. Otherwise, once you have gone out with one of my little girls, you will continue to date no one but her until she is finished with you. You might have heard about her other two sisters, but you will not look. If you make her cry, I make you cry.
       
Rule Seven:
As you stand in my front hallway, waiting for my daughter to appear, and more than an hour goes by, do not sigh and fidget. If you want to be on time for the movie, you should not be dating. My daughter is putting on her makeup, a process that can take longer than painting the Golden Gate Bridge. Instead of just standing there, why don't you do something useful, like changing the oil in my car?

Rule Eight:
The following places are not appropriate for a date with my daughter: Places where there are sofas, beds, or anything softer than a wooden stool. Places where there are no parents, policemen, or nuns within eyesight. Places where there is darkness. Places where there is dancing, holding hands, or happiness. Places where the ambient temperature is warm enough to induce my daughter to wear shorts, tank tops, midriff T-shirts, or anything other than overalls, a sweater, and my old Army Field Jacket - zipped up to her throat. Movies with a strong romantic or sexual theme are to be avoided; movies which feature power tools are okay. Hockey games are okay. Old folks homes are better.

Rule Nine:
Do not lie to me. I may appear to be a middle-aged, gray-headed, dimwitted has-been. But on issues relating to my daughter, I am the all-knowing, merciless god of your universe. If I ask you where you are going and with whom, you have one chance to tell me the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. I have a shotgun, a shovel, and a half acre behind the house. Do not trifle with me.

Rule Ten:
Be afraid. Be very afraid. It takes very little for me to drift back a few years to my Army days and mistake the sound of your car in the driveway for a hostile vehicle. Whenever I hear engines at night, the voices in my head frequently tell me to clean the weapons, probably as I wait for you to bring my daughter home. As soon as you pull into the driveway you should exit your car with both hands in plain sight. Announce the perimeter password, relay in a clear voice that you have brought my daughter home safely and early, then return to your car - there is no need for you to come inside. The camouflaged face at the window is mine.

My wife is pregnant with our second child (due in February) and we don't know the sex of the baby.  With my luck, we'll have another daughter.

2006 Resolution

[Insert Profound and Obligatory New Year's Resolution Here]

Evolution’s Not Religion and Vice Versa

In today's blogosphere where VCs suddenly transform into Moralists and where Young Entrepreneurs are suddenly elevated to Business Gurus, Tom Evslin bravely writes about the recent debate between Intelligent Design and Evolution.  While Tom's posts usually produce rave responses in the Blogosphere with a foray of comments and trackbacks, I'm not seeing much "bounce" from this one. While discussing such a topic, but not revealing which side of the fence he personally sits on, the silent response to his post is deafening.

I find the blogosphere's response to Tom very interesting.

What happened to all of the praise and support that often accompanies such a brave and independent post?  I remember reading several 'hoo-rahs' these past few weeks about bloggers who were 'speaking their mind without fear of consequence on various topics (particularly the recent controversy about Stanley Williams in California). 

What struck me about Tom's post was his ability to reduce the politicized hoopla into a very simple sentence:  "Evolution's not Religion and Vice Versa."

Tom points out, correctly in my opinion, that:

The problem with the current debate is that Intelligent Design advocates claim that Intelligent Design is science AND that scientists and others are acting as if Darwin’s Theory of Evolution is a religion.  The latter is as much a mistake and as much a hindrance to good education as the former.

My personal opinion on the topic is that the dogma on both sides of the argument is staggering.  Both parties are defending their positions so fiercely that neither side will ever concede any portion of their defense out of fear of acquiescing to either an "unholy compromise" or to a "crowd of fanatics." (Both descriptors are interchangeable with both camps.)

The truth of the matter is, as Tom points out, that

Progress towards better understanding of evolution is inhibited it if we attack everyone who questions the current version of the theory or pretend that a theory is a fact.

Likewise,

And it’s legitimate to object to adding unfalsifiable beliefs – including the versions of Intelligent Design I’ve seen – to a science curriculum.

I'm sure Tom will be accused of not taking a stand on either side of the argument and for "falling in between" the two camps in a spineless compromise.  I'd rather believe that he is pointing out the lunacy in the arguments from both parties. 

Great post Tom. 

" Woot "

Please stop saying (writing) it.  You sound (read) like an idiot.

How To Respond to Nigerian Email Spam

I liked this.  Will Price posted his friend's response to the Nigerian Spam Emails  (I get some variation on the Nigerian Email about 5 or 6 times per day).

By a most uncanny coincidence, I am also soliciting a barrister, preferably a national of your country, who worked with Shell development. By a most unfortunate series of events, I was being held hostage in the trunk of the car that claimed the lives of your client. Fortunately I was blown clear of the wreckage and was able to make my way through the jungles of Nigeria to the Plains of Arjuna dragging a dozen large boxes that I was informed by the sister of the mailman who claimed to be the ilegitimate heir to the throne of Uganda, Mr. Yanindada N'Golo Botticelli Vespa, manservant to your client, contained bars of gold bullion!  Read More.

The Resilient US Economy / Where's the Recession?

The next time you hear that the sky is falling and that an economic collapse is imminent in the US economy b/c of interest rates, oil prices, gasoline prices, the war in Iraq, hurricanes, housing bubble, ____________ (you fill in the blank).....think again, look up at the sky....and then look at the facts.

The Wall Street Journal editorial board wrote a piece today about the economy titled, "It Keeps Going, and Going . . ." (subscription required).

In the editorial piece, they note:

• 3rd Quarter GDP growth for the US economy increased to 4.3%
• This is the 10th consecutive quarter of average growth near 4% on an annual basis
• Gross Private Investment grew at 5.8%
• Real Equipment and Software spending at nearly 12%

Well, numbers are nice, but in plainer english these numbers are quite significant.  The article continues to highlight what these numbers really mean to us non-math types (and I believe they are noteworthy observations):

• Economic Expansion for the US was moving fast enough by mid and late summer to blow right past Hurricane Katrina. (Even I wrote about the doom and gloom of Katrina)
• Business investment has been a major growth driver (to the economy) not consumers emptying their "over-extended" wallets
• A shift to business investment bodes well for future growth, even as the housing market continues to cool. (This point is particularly encouraging to me as an entrepreneur)

The article ends with an even more profound and concise summary and positive commentary on the US ecnomomy:

. . . last quarter's GDP numbers show that the U.S. economy can withstand natural disasters, rising interest rates, $70 oil, $4 gasoline--and the relentless pessimism of elite forecasters who said today's prosperity could never happen.

I love this country.

Black Friday

Who gives a crap?