Archive for May, 2007
Wednesday, May 30th, 2007
I am not optimistic when Palm comes out with this:
It’s…a laptop! But it’s not just a laptop, it’s a “smartphone companion.” So what Palm is basically saying is that either the Treo is already so good that there is no room for improvement (which I don’t buy) or that having a separate device to give the user full screen access to data on their Treo is what consumers want (which I don’t buy either). This thing costs $500 and you can’t install any 3rd party applications on it. All it does is communicate with your Treo. So why not just buy a $500 laptop running Windows to do what this thing does, plus a bunch more?
I used the T-Mobile MDA for a while and was not really satisfied at the performance. It was slow and the e-mail software had some problems. It sounds like these Windows Mobile devices have come a long way and my tech guru has pointed me to the newest T-Mobile device, the Wing.
Maybe it’s time to give up the Treo for good.
Posted by Smithers at 4:36 pm in Electronical | Permalink | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 30th, 2007
The Politico:
Thompson’s formal announcement is planned for Nashville. Organizers say the red pickup truck that was a hallmark of Thompson’s first Senate race will begin showing up in Iowa and New Hampshire as an emblem of what they consider his folksy, populist appeal.
No, please no. Not another lazy bumpkin wannabe “common man” phony running for president. I don’t think I can take it.
Posted by Smithers at 2:14 pm in Politics | Permalink | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 30th, 2007
Say it with me now:
NO RAIN!
NO RAIN!
NO RAIN!
NO RAIN!
NO RAIN!
It will only work if you all join in…
Posted by Smithers at 10:32 am in Local Cycling | Permalink | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 30th, 2007
Andrew Sullivan:
The president is right that al Qaeda remains a terrible threat to Americans. He is right to insist on this. But one core reason he is right is because he has been in the White House for the last six years. Al Qaeda surely never had a more helpful man in such a powerful place. After over six years of this presidency, Bin Laden is still at large. Five and a half years after Bin Laden’s religious tools murdered 3,000 innocents, this president still cannot find or capture or kill him. Five and a half years after that dreadful day, al Qaeda’s reach in the Middle East is more extensive than ever, centered in Iraq, where it was barely existent before the war. Over four years after invading Iraq, the security situation there is as grave as it has ever been. Tens of thousands of innocents have been added to the three thousand murdered on 9/11 - many of them unspeakably tortured and murdered by death squads or Islamist cells empowered by Bush’s jaw-dropping negligence. Over three thousand young Americans have died in order to give al Qaeda this victory and this new platform.
Read the rest.
Posted by Smithers at 8:08 am in Politics | Permalink | No Comments »
Tuesday, May 29th, 2007
Ugh. Not a good night on the bike for Smithers.
I got good and spanked in the Wayzata sprint and got blown off the back of the ride twice.
The first moment of crisis took place on the run out to Lake Independence. The tough guys were pushing the pace and I couldn’t hang on. So, when they turned to make the +5 miles loop around the lake I took a short cut and met them around the other side of the lake. The final moment of crisis took place around the back side of Baker Park where the terrain gets a bit rolling. I tried to keep up on the climbs but soon had to bid the group farewell. I had some other dudes to ride with and Ped waited for us in Wayzata so I did not have to ride home alone.
Sometimes, when I am really suffering on a ride, I regret that I do not have better form and think that it would be nice to have some more time to train. But then, when I get home, or on days when I am not on the bike, I realize why I am not riding more than I am. I love little Baby Smithers and Mrs. Smithers and life is in balance right now. I don’t miss riding when I am spending time with my family. I know that some dudes get all stressed out because they are not riding as much as they want and their racing suffers for it. I could care less. I think parents have to take some time to do things for themselves once and a while to reduce stress and stay healthy. Riding and racing here and there does it for me. But my priority is my family first and I make that choice happily. I feel sorry for people who think that they have to make a sacrifice to have a family. My family is the best thing that ever happened to me. The real sacrifice would be if I wasted more time shlumping around on the bike instead of reading a book to little Baby Smithers.
Posted by Smithers at 11:37 pm in Race/Ride Report | Permalink | No Comments »
Tuesday, May 29th, 2007
Posted by Smithers at 5:02 pm in Local Cycling | Permalink | No Comments »
Tuesday, May 29th, 2007
I am officially sour on carbon cranksets.
In one case they are way too expensive to be practical, in the other case they are just simply not durable enough to be considered reliable equipment.
I am not going to bag on any particular brand because they all fit into one of the two categories listed above.
I am going to continue with a set of carbon cranks on one of my bikes, but it is going to be the expensive set. On the other bike I am going back to Record aluminum cranks.
Maybe carbon cranks are the future, but they are not the present.
Posted by Smithers at 3:20 pm in Cycling Biz | Permalink | No Comments »
Tuesday, May 29th, 2007
The size of 80 football fields with a staff of over 1000.
We are never going to leave that country…
Posted by Smithers at 1:42 pm in Politics | Permalink | No Comments »
Tuesday, May 29th, 2007
Oxford Wisconsin
Posted by Smithers at 11:14 am in Miscellaneous | Permalink | No Comments »
Monday, May 28th, 2007
I rode past this place yesterday.
It’s for sale if you are interested.
Posted by Smithers at 8:24 pm in Miscellaneous | Permalink | No Comments »
