Entries Tagged 'Uncategorized' ↓
Omega X-33
July 7th, 2010 — Uncategorized
Mystery Gillette Razor
July 5th, 2010 — Uncategorized
I got this on ebay for a buck. The sale said it is a ladies’ travel razor. No model number, though. The pouch for it is pretty lame.
The manufacturing date code of J4 decodes to the fourth quarter of 1964, I think.
My Gun
March 26th, 2010 — Uncategorized
I used to have a few firearms. But, I haven’t hunted in decades. Western Europe isn’t known for it’s wild game. So, they were of little use to me here.
This, on the other hand, is loads of fun, and I can shoot it in my garden.
Feinwerkbau FWB 603
My Telescope
March 24th, 2010 — Uncategorized
I have one of these:
Meade 7" Maksutov-Cassegrain LX-200
But, the goto mount lost it’s fucking mind and Meade no longer supports it. They actually told me casually how I could buy another LX-200. As if the optics were consumable or something. Wankers. So, I mounted it on one of these:
Losmandy GM-8
In 2000, I was able to take these shots of Luna from my backyard in Texas:
Partial Eclipse
Full half
Full other half
Taken with one of these:
Pentax K1000
As I found, after quite a bit of reading, is that a modern digital camera on the back of my scope is WAY more sensitive than a film camera. And there’s nothing lost in the scanning translation.
My Rides
March 21st, 2010 — Uncategorized
Over the years, these are the bikes I’ve owned. I started driving in 1979. The only time I was without one was from 91 to 93.
1964 Honda S90
1971 Suzuki TS185
1972 Bridgestone 200 SS
1978 Honda CB750F2
1982 Honda CBX
1986 Honda VF-1100C (V65 Magna)
2001 BMW R1200C Phoenix (Independent)
Bullshit discussions
December 24th, 2009 — Uncategorized
One of the things I am finding more common in the forums I like to participate in are what I call bullshit discussions. Here’s an example.
In an atheist forum, starting a thread asking if Adam liked blue cheese or not.
This is a fictitious example, but I’ve seen similar. Here’s my problem with it:
It wastes the effort and time of forum members. What is the point of discussing something that we are pretty sure doesn’t even exist? Do I give a shit what some fictional character did or didn’t do? What the fuck is to be gained from it?
Stop wasting my time. Take your bullshit discussion up where people believe the subject exists and discuss it until your lips fall off. Leave the grownups out of it.
Woos from the Highlands
September 13th, 2009 — Uncategorized
We just got back home from a couple weeks in the Highlands of Scotland. No internet. Well, there is internet if I look for it, but I didn’t look for it. Since there was no wifi signal I could see from my cottage, I packed up the powerbook for two weeks.
Woo report: No Loch Ness Monster in sight. But of course, there is no such beast. My five year old boy is pretty sure of that. No matter though, it does draw visitors in their thousands. Without that, there would be little or no businesses in the small towns of the Great Glen.
Probably the most beautiful place on earth, though. We would love to live there. I’d even go off grid if I could make it work. There are just too many practical problems with a non-EU citizen emigrating to Scotland, though. Even if I should get permission to stay, I couldn’t afford enough land for my boys to farm, if they chose to do that when they grew up.
We stayed in Moffatt, southeast of Glasgow, on the way back to Hull. Another absolutely beautiful town. But we found a higher than usual concentration of woo there. Right on the town square is the Centre of Wellness. There, you can get your reflexology, chiropody, and plenty of other nonsense. Around the corner, more reflexology and fortune telling. I was quite surprised to see two of these shops in one small town high street.
To quote Ulysses Everett McGill, “Hard times have flushed the chumps, everyone’s looking for answers.”. And there sure as hell are plenty of places that will relieve said chumps of their hard earned cash.
Follow up to “What Motivates This Atheist”
July 28th, 2009 — Uncategorized
There have been a few comments on the thread back home. Here they are:
hawk wrote on Jul 13, 2009 5:30 PM:
” I’m no atheist but I do hide from missionaries. “
shimko42 wrote on Jul 13, 2009 8:30 PM:
” what a waste of space jesse when will you stop picking on old ladies??? grow up and get over it. it’s her opinion and shows up in the church directory. So maybe she is preaching to the chior but at least she is willing to preach and not belittle unlike some people I know. Leave the lady alone if you want to pick on people come to Ashland meet me at my house and pick on me. “
johlsson wrote on Jul 14, 2009 7:07 AM:
” Shimko, are Sally’s opinions somehow protected just because she’s an old lady?
She’s presenting as fact, attributes to atheists that we most certainly do not have. I pointed it out.
I was wondering how long it would take before Sally’s bulldogs started barking, metaphorically.
Sally gets no free ride to spew whatever she wants without criticism, regardless of her age or sex.
Now, did you have something to add about the content of either her or my posts?
Hawk, I’m with you on the missionary subject. Culture-erasers. “
listner wrote on Jul 14, 2009 4:49 PM:
” johlsson;
I enjoy your posts. Well thought out and logical.
I enjoy your posts. Well thought out and logical.
It matters not if the author is a little old lady. Once she decides to place these types of letters in the paper, she must expect some reaction from those that may not share her beliefs. Consider, however, the wonder that after all these years, the free exercise of one’s own religion coupled with our right to express our own opinions, is still a cherished liberty in this country. I may dislike the religious right ( or any religous zealot who believes they have a monopoly on truth )and the effects I precieve they have had on this countries policies, but I’ll defend their right to speak, whether it be enlighten or nonsense.
Your opinion is just as valuable as hers! Don’t shy away from good arguement! “
johlsson wrote on Jul 15, 2009 11:18 AM:
” listner,
Thank you for the compliment.
I have given much consideration to the first amendment rights we enjoy. Stunning foresight on the framers of the constitution, I’d agree.
Sadly, there remain some who would deny people who disagree with their beliefs that right. Down that path lies madness.
Bien a vous de Belgique. “
thetech wrote on Jul 15, 2009 9:35 PM:
” That would be the “path”; you’ve been on for some time now. Madness!
The “other”; is too narrow, for the likes of you……………………….. “
Jesse Ohlsson wrote on Jul 16, 2009 1:21 PM:
” Techies, you are most dependable and can be counted on to avoid the discussion entirely. It is beyond tiresome.
The difference between you and Sally is she far more closely lives the convictions of her beliefs. You, on the other hand, epitomize the hypocritical christian. Your hatred for me isn’t even thinly veiled.
Convenient, how you pick and choose the bits of your religion that agree with you, isn’t it? You do not help your cause. “
Jason McQueen wrote on Jul 20, 2009 9:32 AM:
” Many people believe in God but don’t understand how to relate to Him. I would guess that it is to these people the original article is directed.
Even though I am a Christian I have had a few athiest friends, many very intelligent and articulate people. I understand their motivation: they are simply unwilling to yield control of their lives to another higher power. They want to be their own boss. Even as a minister of the gospel, there is nothing more I can do in that case (except pray for them); they are free to go and do as they will. God Himself allows them the freedom to choose Him or not and I can do no more or less on His behalf.
The Bible says that the first step of faith is to believe that God is, and that He will reward those who diligently seek Him. Without that belief, nothing else in the Book will seem relevant.
Aside from that, as an American, I will tolerate the preaching of any god or belief, so long as I am also allowed to preach mine. I understand that not everything I would hear as free speech will be pleasing to me, since obviously the world does not revolve around me. I would, however, ask the same understanding of others.
You may or may not be interested to know that I also do not support school-led prayer, as I would not trust any modern school administrator to properly lead my children before God’s Throne; I can do that myself. “
nokomis wrote on Jul 20, 2009 12:57 PM:
” Hey Hawk! I have to agree with you! That being said, I have to weigh in on the letter written by Ms Sally Blair. I get a little aggravated by the folks who call themselves Christians. Those folks have a tendency to talk down to anyone who does not share their own religious philosophies. And yes – they ARE philosophies. The bible? It has been “translated”, “interpreted”, re-translated, and re-interpreted, by every so-called Christian religion out there, AND by each individual leader in those religions. And, as we have seen so well by the written words of the US government’s so-called historians, the interpretations and translations can, and will be, skewed in the direction each individual “translator” or “interpreter” is wont to believe. The “translators/interpreters” have a tendency to “romanticize” what is really going on, and sometimes out and out lie, in order to give the best reflection to themselves and their beliefs. Just like folks who wrote all those US history books that we had to read in school growing up. I will quit while I am ahead. Christianity is a sore subject for me and mine. “
adnilabuc wrote on Jul 22, 2009 9:00 PM:
” Proving once again atheists are the biggest moralist busybodies eh, Jess?
Most Gods are the same as each other. To not see that is like the blind men who argue over whether the elephant is a leg, a trunck or a belly. “
Jesse Ohlsson wrote on Jul 25, 2009 2:11 AM:
” Wonderful, adnilabuc!
Indeed, I’d take what you said and expand it to: All gods are the same as each other… and all equally fictional.
A remarkably important point that theists tend to ignore.
As for your charge of me being a moral busybody, perhaps you can quote where I am suggesting ANY particular moral direction people should take. I’m working on the assumption here that a moral busybody is one who tries to tell others how to act morally. If your definition includes questioning others’ moral codes, climb on into the pot, for now you are doing the same by criticizing mine.
You’re normally much better at this. Is it that you have no substantive argument today, and just had to resort to calling me a name? “
Summary:
No one EVER actually responds to the points I make. Oh, as we can see, they don’t like to see me pick on Sally, or their favorite sky pixie. This doesn’t surprise me much. More on why that is in the next post…
