Kindle vs Sony Reader

Feature	Amazon Kindle Keyboard	Sony Reader	Notes
Power	AC adapter or USB	USB only	Have to buy separate charger since wouldn't want to take a computer on vacation
Preview	First chapter	No	Amazon store with extensive ratings and community and preview is hands down winner
Notes	Cumbersome underlining, no drawing	Click two buttons to pull up drawing tools	This is the killer app reason I bought the Sony Reader since I am an active reader and the Kindle slowed things down
Up and Running	A breeze if you already have an Amazon account	Obstacles: required contacting support, creating two logins, downloading software to PC

Curious first image from Curiosity

Curiosity has landed!  The search for evidence of life on Mars is underway.  

Our first image is now coming in... uh oh.

The Three Laws of Dentistry

1. A dentist must protect its own existence (make money $).
2. A dentist must obey the orders and quotas of the dental high council, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. A dentist may not injure a patient or, through inaction, allow a patient to come to harm unless conflicts with First and second Laws (NOOP)

a nice red, under ten

a nice red, under ten
helps me get through the day

a nice red, under ten
uncorks my cares away

a nice red, under ten
feel your toes wiggle

a nice red, under ten
pas straw de swizzle

a nice red, under ten
California, here I come

a nice red, under ten
with a hint of plum

a nice red, under ten
perhaps, un journey a Paris

a nice red, under ten
mais oui, nectar of berries

a nice red, under ten
that will be $10.85 monsieur

a nice red, under ten
j'ai oublié la taxe, mon Dieu!

Sunday breakfast, alone

Alone with nature
No one would get up
Nourishing to the soul
Not even for doughnuts

Today is not Sunday
The hawks are circling
With berries and nuts
The alarm tweets arise

With a sip of French roast
I look to the skies
Today is Cloud-day
I enjoy it at last

Grape Gluten-Free Pasta

Fusilli gluten-free pasta
Roasted vegetables
Melted Feta cheese
Grape tomatoes
Red seedless grapes

Drink:  Green Mountain Espresso

120 Meter Hurdles

Businesses are putting up more and more obstacles to opt-out of marketing material and selling your information to 3rd parties.  When it comes to filing taxes and entering in your most guarded financial information, I always opt out.  Here is my latest experience with H&R Block:

1. When you register the program, they give you a dialog box about their privacy policy is available at www.hrblock.com/software/2011/privacy.  They did not make the text selectable so you can't copy it.  So you have to write it down or type it in notepad.  Wouldn't it be so much easier for consumers if they just had an opt-in/out checkbox as part of the registration process itself.
2. Link is by tax year, so have to opt-out every single year.  http://www.hrblock.com/software/2011/privacy
3. The link redirects to general privacy policy.
   http://www.hrblock.com/universal/privacy_policy.html
4. The actual link from the privacy policy is located toward the bottom of long text.  I bet next year it will be embedded within a EULA.  
5. The hyplink itself is styled so as not to show up as a hyperlink unless you hove over "click here", so it is not easy to find.
6. Check out this form, they are asking for the same personal information you just filled out.  http://www.hrblock.com/privacy/optout.html?disp=1
7. I made the mistake of selecting all check boxes to opt out.  If you marked opt out of phone, you have to give them a phone number.  Thank God those incessant local pizza commercials have led to long term potentiation, and I thought it was wasting a neuron or two.
8. Drum roll please....
   
   
   
   Their form is not secure, so they are trying to get you to submit your personal contact information in the clear.  Easy fix here is the secure link
9. Adding insult to injury, once you submit your information you get a message that your request will be processed within 5-7 business days.  Does that mean your information will be used for a week without your permission?