ClosingBracket

I just realized how long it’s been since I last posted something to my blog. I guess nothing has inspired me to share anything with the world wide web.

The latest news is the presidential primaries and how bad the economy is. It’s no big deal that Columbia and Venezuela are massing troops on their borders. I haven’t seen any live reports from those jungles.

I miss the old guy who used to “make the donuts” in the morning.

Is it wrong that my favorite song for the day is She Bop?

So I decided to call my mortgage guy. I wanted to get the best deal on a mortage for my new house purchase. So I said to him “What can you get me?”. He says to me “We have an interest only mortgage.” I think to my self…hmmm sounds exclusive. “Interest only mortgage” I say. “I’m interested in a mortgage, I’ll take that!” He then says, “It’s an adjustable rate mortgage.” I think to myself “perfect…if I ever get in trouble paying this mortgage, I can always adjust the rate to something I can afford. I say “I’ll take it!” before he can change his mind. Who would want a mortgage that your not interested in or can’t adjust?

I sign the paper’s without taking time to read them because I don’t want him changing his mind. What a chump!

My Tivo remote stopped working this weekend. Only one button worked.

I’m scared. No TV has forced me to….gasp…listen to the radio while not in the car, rent movies that are so-so, pay attention when others (wife) are speaking, etc. etc.

When will the agony stop!

UPDATE: I ordered a new TIVO remote from www.weaknees.com and it worked! I’m back baby!

I have been house hunting the last few weeks/months and have made some observations.

• why doesn’t everyone else have the same taste as me?
• who doesn’t clean their house when they are trying to sell it?
• when is a 1 car garage OK?
• why would you only upgrade the gas stove?
• why do most finished basements suck?
• how rickety can a swing set look before it falls down?
• are holes in dry wall that hard to fix?

Anyways.

It’s a pain in the butt to look for a new house. Nothing seems to “fit”. The hunt continues.

I was thinking today about technology and etiquette. It seems to me like some new questions about etiquette need to be answered.

e-mail

1. How long can you hold off responding before its considered rude?
2. What’s the time limit in reading the e-mail? (how long until you are confident the other person read it?)

instant messaging

1. Is a response to every message required?
2. How long until your over the limit in answering a message?
3. Is every message sent considered read?

mobile

1. Is it rude to send someone directly to voice mail?
2. Is it rude to not call back if no message was left?
3. Is it rude to call back without listening to the message first (based on caller id)

mobile messaging

1. Are the rules the same as instant messaging or more relaxed?
2. Are you required to respond?
3. When is a back and forth considered complete?

I don’t know the rules…does anyone? In person chats are easy. You respond to questions. You say thanks or goodbye and walk away when you are done. I guess when body language is taken out of the picture then everything gets a little more fuzzy.

I have been hosting a defunct forum here at ClosingBracket. Recently, my friend Ernie suggested a forum to discuss our addiction to the TV series Heroes. The result? The forum is back! Check out the topics. You may find something interesting to read or have the urge to contribute yourself.

Check out this page I found on wikipedia about rare baseball events.

Check it out if you ever wanted to know statistics on…

• Unassisted triple plays
• Perfect games
• Most strikeouts
• Back-to-back-to-back-to-back-to-back homeruns
• Pinch-hit grandslams
• Number of wild pitches in a game
• etc. etc. etc.

Another page on baseball I found was in regards to corked bats. I thought more players would have been caught doing this then listed. The article mentions Mythbusters and how there tests showed a corked bat absorbs energy and the ball doesn’t go as far. Makes you wonder if a corked bat would even help. The only benefit is bat speed. I guess this may help increase your hitting percentage, not necessarily your home run count.

It’s too early for me to be studying the baseball strange. It’s time to find some cofee…

I went out to the Outback Steakhouse last night for dinner. I gotta tell you, I haven’t been in awhile so it was extra tasty.

I got a nice ribeye steak with a Caeser salad and a loaded baked potato. (I feel the baked potato is a requirement for steak.)

The wife got the filet with some french onion soup and garlic mashed. It was all good.

The only downside was the price. Dinner was around $20 per person. I need to figure out how to cook a good steak at home. I need to replicate whatever rub they use.

I found a couple rubs online that I need to try. I will list them here for anyone interested.

• http://www.recipezaar.com/52366
• http://tvwbb.infopop.cc/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/1980069052/m/5610004152
• http://www.recipelink.com/mf/14/20693

I will definitely give these a try. If I can replicate Outback Steakhouse at home I will be a happy steak eater.

For some reason I was thinking about Easter island. I’ve heard bits and pieces of history from television and radio. I decided to look it up on wikipedia.

It’s wierd that they would chop down all the trees on the island and also create so many stoneworks.

For those wondering, here is where Easter Island is. It’s just one of those wierd placed.

Any body wanna go?