Archive for ◊ June, 2008 ◊

Leonard Sokol at Carnegie Mellon
Monday, June 30th, 2008 | Author: dzsokol

We took Leonard to Pittsburgh over the weekend to start his pre-college program at Carnegie Mellon University.  To demonstrate to me that he is growing up, he actually drove for a couple of hours through the eastern portion of Ohio… He is staying in a dorm room at Morewood Commons and taking two college courses over the next six weeks.  As you can see from the photos below, he’s very excited to be involved with the best minds in computer science.

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He will be entering his junior year of high school in the fall, yet he will have already completed a half-year of college credits.  His mom and I are very proud of him.

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Anniversaries and Wishes
Sunday, June 29th, 2008 | Author: dzsokol

A married couple in their early 60s was celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary in a quiet, romantic little restaurant. Suddenly, a tiny yet beautiful fairy appeared on their table.  She said, ‘For being such an exemplary married couple and for being loving to each other for all this time, I will grant you each a wish.’

The wife answered, ‘Oh, I want to travel around the world with my darling husband. The fairy waved her magic wand and – poof! – two tickets for the Queen Mary II appeared in her hands.

The husband thought for a moment: ‘Well, this is all very romantic, but an opportunity like this will never come again. I’m sorry my love, but my wish is to have a wife 30 years younger than me.

The wife, and the fairy, were deeply disappointed, but a wish is a wish. So the fairy waved her magic wand and poof!…the husband became 92
years old.

The moral of this story: Men who are ungrateful bastards should remember fairies are female…

Hat tip to Kon-man

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We’re taking Lenny to…
Saturday, June 28th, 2008 | Author: dzsokol

We’re taking Lenny to Carnegie Mellon University. He is excited. listen

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Old is When…
Saturday, June 28th, 2008 | Author: dzsokol

A lady goes to the bar on a cruise ship and orders a Scotch with two drops of water. As the bartender gives her the drink she says, ‘I’m on this cruise to celebrate my 80th birthday and it’s today…’ The bartender says, ‘Well, since it’s your birthday, I’ll buy you a drink. In fact, this one is on me.’

As the woman finishes her drink, the woman to her right says, ‘I would like to buy you a drink, too.’ The old woman says, ‘Thank you. Bartender, I want a Scotch with two drops of water.’ ‘Coming up,’ says the bartender As she finishes that drink, the man to her left says, ‘I would like to buy you one, too.’ The old woman says, ‘Thank you. Bartender, I want another Scotch with two drops of water.’ ‘Coming right up,’ the bartender says.

As he gives her the drink, he says, ‘Ma’am, I’m dying of curiosity. Why the Scotch with only two drops of water?’ The old woman replies, ‘Sonny, when you’re my age, you’ve learned how to hold your liquor. Holding your water, however, is a whole other issue.’

‘OLD’ IS WHEN..
Your sweetie says, ‘Let’s go upstairs and make love,’ and you answer, ‘Pick one; I can’t do both!’

‘OLD’ IS WHEN…
Your friends compliment you on your new alligator shoes and you’re barefoot.

‘OLD’ IS WHEN…
A sexy babe catches your fancy and your pacemaker opens the garage door.

‘OLD’ IS WHEN…
Going braless pulls all the wrinkles out of your face.

‘OLD’ IS WHEN…
You don’t care where your spouse goes, just as long as you don’t have to go along.

‘OLD’ IS WHEN…
You are cautioned to slow down by the doctor instead of by the police.

‘OLD’ IS WHEN. ..
‘Getting a little action’ means you don’t need to take any fiber today.

‘OLD’ IS WHEN…
‘Getting lucky’ means you find your car in the parking lot.

‘OLD’ IS WHEN…
An ‘all nighter’ means not getting up to use the bathroom.

AND

‘OLD’ IS WHEN…
You are not sure these are jokes?

Hat tip to Slick Imwalle

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The Michelangelo Code
Friday, June 27th, 2008 | Author: dzsokol

There was the Da Vinci code, now there are those that claim that the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel has secret codes embedded in the artwork from Michelangelo.

The authors believe the entire Sistine Chapel, which they say is built to the same proportions as the Holy Temple in Jerusalem, is a “lost mystical message of universal love” which was intended to be decoded.

Category: Engineering  | Leave a Comment
Important Facts and Figures
Thursday, June 26th, 2008 | Author: dzsokol

Interesting story from George Will with important facts and figures:

…in 2006, blacks, who are less than 13 percent of the population, were 37.5 percent of all state and federal prisoners. About one in 33 black men was in prison, compared with one in 79 Hispanic men and one in 205 white men…

In 2005 the black homicide rate was over seven times higher than that of whites and Hispanics combined. … From 1976 to 2005, blacks committed over 52 percent of all murders.

Engineering Laws
Thursday, June 26th, 2008 | Author: dzsokol

The Laws…….
of Mechanical Repair
After your hands become coated with grease, your nose will begin to itch and you’ll have to pee.

of Gravity
Any tool, when dropped, will roll to the least accessible corner.

of Probability
The probability of being watched is directly proportional to the stupidity of your act.

of Random Numbers
If you dial a wrong number, you never get a busy signal and someone always answers.

of the Alibi
If you tell the boss you were la te for work because you had a flat tire, the very next morning you will have a flat tire.

of Law
If you change lines (or traffic lanes), the one you were in will always move faster than the one you are in now (works every time)

of the Bath
When the body is fully immersed in water, the telephone rings.
of Close Encounters
The probability of meeting someone you know increases dramatically when you are with someone you don’t want to be seen with.

of the Result
When you try to prove to someone that a machine won’t work, it will.

of Biomechanics
The severity of the itch is inversely proportional to the reach.

of the Theater
At any event, the people whose seats are furthest from the aisle arrive last.

of Starbucks
As soon as you sit down to a cup of hot coffee, your boss will ask you to do something which will last until the coffee is cold.

of Lockers
If there are only two people in a locker room, they will have adjacent lockers.

of Physical Surfaces
The chances of an open-faced jelly sandwich landing face down on a floor covering are directly correlated to the newness and cost of the carpet/rug.

of Logical Argument
Anything is possible if you don’t know what you are talking about.

of Physical Appearance
If the shoe f its, it’s ugly.

of Public Speaking
A closed mouth gathers no feet.

of Commercial Marketing Strategy
As soon as you find a product that you really like, they will stop making it.

of being sick
If you don’t feel well, make an appointment to go to the doctor, by the time you get there you’ll feel better. Don’t make an appointment and you’ll stay sick.

Rex TV & Appliance
Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 | Author: dzsokol

Update – It was interesting to read the business section of the Dayton Daily News and see that others are finally making observations I made nearly two years ago (see below).   I commend Rex’s CEO, Stuart Rose, for his resourcefulness in providing returns to stockholders.  However, stockholders usually invest in a company based on it having some core competency and direction.  A telling quote from the Rex CEO, “It’s awkward for an investor to understand our company today.”

Nov 5, 2006 – My son Barry wrote a few business papers last year on Rex TV, and that motivated me to take a closer look at their performance.  If you’re not familiar with Rex, it’s a smaller version of “Best Buy” that is headquartered in Dayton, Ohio with approximately 100 stores located in smaller cities around the US.  

I was curious how Rex could compete with a Best Buy and Circuit City.  I then noticed that most of their profit was generated from investment in ethanol plants.   I’m somewhat dismayed that the shareholders haven’t questioned the company strategy.  What is a company that is in the “dog-eat-dog” world of consumer electronics doing in the alternative energy business?  Is the name of the company “Rex TV & Ethanol Supply”?

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The Race is On…
Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 | Author: dzsokol

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Great Comedian Passes Away…
Tuesday, June 24th, 2008 | Author: dzsokol

You may have seen news that George Carlin passed away… I remember sitting in the house of my friend, Jeff Gilbert, when we were 10 years old and listening to Carlin humor on record albums… Carlin was the first “in-your-face” comedian that I really enjoyed.

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