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March 31, 2003
Holy crap!
ok... I really have no idea what to say about this...
I would especially like to draw attention to this paragraph.
During the Iraqi TV interview, Arnett said, "I'd like to say from the beginning that [for] the 12 years I've been coming here, I've met unfailing courtesy and cooperation, courtesy from your people and cooperation from the Ministry of Information."
actually... i do know what to say. If they are so nice over there... don't bother coming back.
dork
stu
Posted by Stuart at 11:26 AM | Comments (1)
Logo Poll
By now most of you have probably noticed the new logo up top. The more I look at it the more I really don't like it, so I've designed several alternatives. Please reply to this post listing your top three choices from the following...
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
10 |
My favorites are #4, #5, and #8, but I'm also partial to #7. Let me know what you all think (maybe you all think I'm just nuts :s). Thanks for your participation!
Posted by Joey at 05:07 AM | Comments (10)
March 27, 2003
Dolphins and Mines
I saw this tonight on a TV show called "The Pulse".
Dolphins Sent to Gulf to Hunt Mines
That's right, the marines have employed dolphins (despite animal rights activists' protests) to search out and tag underwater mines so that bomb crews can come in and disarm them. Even in murky water where a human could only see a few feet ahead, the dolphins can "see" the mines up to thousands of feet away with the help of their built-in sonar systems. They are taught specifically not to touch the mines, and as long as they are trained correctly there is no direct danger to them.
I think this is a great idea. Rather than spend billions of dollars on some kind of little unmanned, sonar equipped, mine searching submarine, why not train a dolphin? It just makes sense, and I think it's really cool.
Posted by Joey at 10:41 AM | Comments (2)
Oh boy...
I can't believe how lazy I am...
Posted by Stuart at 07:44 AM | Comments (8)
March 26, 2003
New GuestMap
A few minutes ago I was looking at my GuestMap and thinking about all the tacks that used to be there. The reason they are not there anymore is because my free GuestMap provider deleted entries after so many days. :(
So I went looking and found a new free GuestMap site. This one has a limit of 100 posts (as opposed to 40 on the old one) and as far as I can tell it won't delete any tacks. :D
My main point in writing this entry is to encourage everyone who signed before to please Tack the GuestMap again. Thanks!
Posted by Joey at 11:08 AM | Comments (1)
Slow Day
Today has been so boring. I'm sitting at work wondering why I'm here. Only one out of three Customer Support Representatives is currently helping a customer, and I think she called the customer back from a previous call.
ContentWatch has been going steadily down the drain since January. I'm not sure what started it all, but recently we've partnered with a company called Digital River. They've completely automated our web-store, which has made things a lot easier for our web guys, but unfortunately it has made things extremely annoying for us Customer Service Reps...
Instead of using an internal database, we now have to access their outside database through our web browser. They assigned our usernames and passwords, and we can't change them. Everytime I enter their database access page I get a popup for their promotional offers and stuff. We can no longer do refunds the way we used to, so Karma is doing them all by hand. It's so much more work for all of us.
Digital River is also handling all of our marketing email. The system my dad has been writing over the last several months went right out the window, and now when he wants to send any mail to our customers, he basically has to do data entry. He also has no way of choosing which of the people on our list get the email. The email system he designed had the ability to send specific emails to specific sets of previous customers. For instance, we would send certain promotional offers to customers, but you wouldn't want to send a promotional offer to someone who's already purchased that particular product. He's lost all of that functionality through the new system.
Our web-based ContentAudit application cannot be run a second time with an email address that's been used once because of some field duplication violation on Digital River's end. When we want to make changes to stuff like that, the only way is to put in a request to their programmer, who does the work on his own time while he's juggling requests from probably twenty other clients.
The first mass mailer from Digital River went out last week and we didn't see any improvement in sales from it. If this trend keeps up, we probably won't be in business much longer.
At any rate, I'm really starting to dislike my job. Along with business slowing to a crawl and all of the problems with the new system, I'm starting to get really tired of answering the same questions over and over again. A few months ago my hours were cut down to twelve or so per week, which is just not quite enough for me to live comfortably. Sometimes I wish I could just quit, but with all of my bills I need as much money as I can get.
Janene says I should get a second job. I'm reluctant to go out and look, but I'm starting to wonder what else I can really do. I'm looking forward to my new job up at the U and for the tuition reimbursement it will provide, but I certainly couldn't keep that as my only job.
If anybody out there knows of any good job opportunities that would work around my schedule, I'd appreciate it if you'd drop me an email. Thanks!
Posted by Joey at 04:36 AM | Comments (2)
March 23, 2003
Union Programming Council Retreat
I mentioned earlier that the transition to the new UPC Chairs would happen April 18-19, but there's now been a slight change of plans. I was not aware, but the transition process involves a retreat of some sort, and seeing as how the 18th and 19th are Easter weekend this year, they've moved the retreat up to April 11-12. I have no idea where we are going or what they plan to do, as I still have not received any information via email (Mondi called me last night to tell me about the rescheduling).
I'm really starting to look forward to this position, and can't wait to meet the other council members. I think I've met some of them but never really got to know them. The retreat should be a good place for us to familiarize ourselves with one another.
Posted by Joey at 12:32 PM | Comments (0)
March 22, 2003
National Security
I found a good quote today from John Adams, second President of the United States:
"It must be felt that there is no national security but in the nation's humble acknowledged dependence upon God and His overruling providence."
I really think this has never been more true than now. It is extremely important that we trust our nation's leaders and the soldiers who are fighting for us in the Middle East, but it is infinitely more important that we look to God to uphold our freedoms against those who would destroy them. According to Isaiah 63:1-2, He is "mighty to save", and He will deliver our troops from harm if we turn to Him in humble prayer.
Posted by Joey at 11:44 AM | Comments (0)
March 20, 2003
Numb?
I'm not sure it's actually sunk in for me yet. I'm sure most of you already know that last night the United States performed a first "surgical strike" on Baghad. From what I can gather, U.S. Intelligence spotted a bunker that they believed was housing severel top Iraqi military officials. If they're right, this whole war might be over already.
I seriously doubt they got Saddam, partly because he appeared on Iraqi television a few hours later (although it could've been taped previously or faked), and partly because if we would've spotted Saddam I doubt we would've killed him with cruise missiles. We have enough special operatives in the country that if we knew where he was we could storm the building and take him out. The only reason our military would start to fire missiles is if they wanted to take out key command bases or similar structures.
The biggest thing I'm worried about is that Bush has completely disregarded the U.N. on this issue. I know a lot of people are anxious to get rid of the U.N. entirely, and maybe this is the only way to get things done, but I can't help but wonder how this will effect global politics. I just hope when the dust settles the rest of the world won't look at us as the bad guys.
Other than that one little concern, I'm all for what is going on over there. Saddam has played with those people way too long. He needs out, and I truly believe this is the only way. We can't just keep sitting around on our thumbs waiting for him to disarm while he's in there slaughtering his own people. We have the legal and moral responsibility to remove him from power. He has violated the terms of his earlier agreement at the end of the Gulf War. That agreement plainly states the penalties for violating those terms, and the U.N. just wants to continue playing nice.
Anyway, enough of my rambling. Let me know what you think.
Posted by Joey at 11:35 AM | Comments (1)
Spring Break 2003
It's Spring Break this week and I haven't gotten anything done. I've been helping Stu move, which I'm more than happy to do, but it has been taking a lot of my time. I really need to get my application for full major status done, but I've spent most of the week doing other things.
I'm working full time today, which I can only do since I don't have school. It's nice for the money, I guess, but I really could've used this morning to do other things—but the question is... Would I have got up this morning if I didn't have to come to work? Probably not.
Janene and I are going to see Steve and Merissa in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat tonight. They are doing it as an activity with their LDS Stake. I'm sure it will be a lot of fun.
Hopefully I'll be able to squeeze in some time tomorrow and Saturday so I can build my portfolio. I need to look into getting a transcript of my ACT scores. I think I got a 30 (maybe a 31 :?), but I can't remember. I've heard that a transcript costs $30, and I'm really not looking forward to forking out that kind of cash. The things we do for a university education, eh?
And in other news, we started bombing Iraq last night. I put more of my feelings about that on The Forum. I just want to pray for America right now, especially that our leaders will have wisdom as they make decisions that are affecting our future as a nation. They are doing what they must to protect our freedoms, and for that I am extremely grateful. I cannot imagine having the weight of those decisions on my shoulders.
I'm also praying for the families and people in Iraq that they can understand why we have to do this. I can't hope to comprehend what kind of suffering they are going through, but Christ has suffered all things. So I pray that God will be with them to comfort them and their children through this turbulent time.
Posted by Joey at 03:26 AM | Comments (1)
March 16, 2003
It's Official...
I just spoke with Mondi Basmenji, this year's Union Programming Council Board Chair. I've been chosen to be next year's Technology Chair! This doesn't come as much of a surprise, since I was about the only person to apply, but I'm glad to have the selection process out of the way.
The transition will happen April 18 and 19, and I should be receiving an email any day now with more information about how that's all going to work. I've already asked Stuart to serve on my commitee, and I'd like to extend an invitation to any other U of U students with any kind of web-design experience (PHP, CGI, and Flash are a plus, but certainly not necessary). If anyone reading this wants to join, or knows someone who may be interested, please contact me for more information.
I also want to thank all of my friends and family who have supported me either directly, or through other means. I really appreciate everyone's help proofreading my application and I'm grateful for your all of your thoughts and prayers on my behalf. I'm really looking forward to serving the University in this new position.
Posted by Joey at 02:23 AM | Comments (3)
March 14, 2003
Hello
Just figured I would say HI to everyone here... :) Anywho... Has anyone here read any of Gerald Lund's books. I just read one yesterday. It is an interesting story about what life would be like in the United States if the Constitution had never been ratified. And to make a long story short... it was pretty bad. To find out more you had better read the book. It is called "The Freedom Factor". Yeah it has a little romance, but still the story line is pretty interesting. Anyways I was wondering what others thought about all of these ppl who want to take away our Right to Bear Arms. And so on like that. Or maybe our right to free speech. With the Congress wanting to let the CIA or whatever, have more freedom to spy on ppl that they think are a threat to our country. Whether or not they have the evidence. Or to get the evidence that they need to. Anyways that was in the news like almost 10 months ago so I may be a little rusty on that topic. I guess I just feel that we need our Constitution. And so on.
~Shi~
Posted by at 12:04 PM | Comments (2)
Joseph—Pharaoh's Number II
Here's a free date idea!
Everyone is invited to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat produced by the Provo, Utah South Stake.
What: FREE Musical production of Joseph
Where: Provo, Utah South Stake Center, 835 South 500 West in Provo
When: Thursday, Friday, Saturday March 20-22; 7:30 PM
For crowd control, the stake wants everyone to have tickets (but the show is free). If you need tickets, e-mail Steve ASAP.
Posted by Steve at 02:36 AM | Comments (0)
Gabe's TypOmeter
A few months ago (Stu will know what I'm talking about) I downloaded a fun little freeware app that tracked how far my mouse had travelled. It even gave you links to download (relatively) cool stuff for each mile you reached. Well, the program was horribly buggy (perhaps Win XP problems?) and I deleted it a few short weeks after I downloaded it.
Now I have found something similar, but much more practical in my opinion. I was looking for a good freeware typing tutor program, and stumbled across a freeware typing speedometer. It has a needle that shows how fast you are currently typing in key-presses per minute and WPM. It also has several other indicators that track your average and maximum WPM, along with your average over the last ten seconds, so that after you've typed something you can look at it and see how fast you were just going. Plus, it keeps track of your total key-presses, words, and mouse clicks.
You can read more about it and download it here. It's free, and as far as I know does not contain any spyware. Have fun!
Posted by Joey at 02:15 AM | Comments (0)
March 12, 2003
Elizabeth Smart Found
I honestly have no idea what to say. Call me insensitive and pessimistic, but I really had no hope for her being alive past August last year. I guess I was wrong!
In case you haven't heard (and I have no idea how you haven't), Elizabeth Smart was spotted today walking down the street in Sandy. There have been so many articles written about the story that it would take me a while to list them here, and you've probably read them all, so I won't. However, I discovered one article that really suprised me. This has got to be one of the more twisted parts of the whole story:
Elizabeth Smart May Have Been Photographed With Street Preacher At Party in September
Some guy at a party last September took some pictures of Brian David Mitchell (Smart's kidnapper), along with two women with veiled faces. I don't blame the photographer at all for not turning in the pictures sooner, since Mitchell wasn't a suspect until October/November, but even then the media didn't know about him until February, when they began releasing photos and sketches of the guy. I just think it's nuts that for at least part of the last eight months she's been walking around in broad daylight and nobody could see the forest for the trees. Scary. :eek
Posted by Joey at 07:16 AM | Comments (7)
French Policy on Iraq Crisis
Over the last few weeks I've been writing about a lecture series at the University about the Iraqi-American conflict. The last lecture in the series took place yesterday, and I was unable to attend on account of my UPC Technology Chair interview.
Anyway, an article came out in the Chrony today about the lecture. You can read the article by clicking the following link:
Paris and the Middle East: Making Sense of French Politics
This article helped me to gain a better understanding of why France and Germany have problems with the idea of starting a war in Iraq. It's still difficult for me to see a way to get Saddam out of there without some kind of conflict, and this whole situation has really gone on longer than it should have, but I can see how this war could really start a chain reaction with a lot of nasty repercussions.
I have complete faith that the U.S. Military can take Saddam out without creating unnecessary casualties. However, I personally think we aren't doing enough to get the rest of the world on our side. If we violate the U.N. as we go to war with Iraq, I'm really afraid that we will only create more enemies for ourselves (Listen to me... I sound like a Democrat! :p).
Posted by Joey at 03:08 AM | Comments (0)
March 11, 2003
The Beginning of a Long Day
Today is going to be interesting. I've got an appointment with a computer science department counselor this morning around 9am, followed by a meeting with the UPC Technology Committee around 10:30. Then I have a little bit of time to eat lunch before my 12:25 Symphonic Band class. That class gets out around 1:45, and at 2:20 I have my interview for UPC Technology Chair.
I'll let you all know how the day turns out, but if anyone is reading this between 2:20 and 2:40 this afternoon, throw a little prayer my way, would ya please? Thanks!
Posted by Joey at 08:46 AM | Comments (0)
The End of a Long Day
I suppose I should write something to end all this nonsense. I had my interview for the UPC Technology Chair about an hour and a half ago. I didn't know who the interview was with until I walked in the room to find half the UPC board in there: Mondi (the current UPC Board Chair), Anne (next year's UPC Board Chair), Jim and Frank (Union staff members), and Dave (the current UPC Technology Chair).
They each took turns asking questions like "What is your best quality and how will you apply it to this position?", "What do you hope to accomplish as Technology Chair?", and "What is your favorite place in the Union, and why?". My favorite one was "What is your definition of 'accountability' and how will you keep that in mind as you provide leadership for your commitee?".
Earlier today I learned that there was one other person who (sortof) applied for Technology Chair. The application for board positions just had all six board chair positions at the top, with instructions to "check all positions you wish to be considered for". This particular applicant actually checked all six boxes! :o He has not served on the council before, so it will be interesting to see if he gets one of the positions.
I feel like I answered the questions well, or at least truthfully. I told them (in answer to the 'accountability' question) that I don't feel as though I am a good leader, and that I will have to learn how to keep my commitee accountable. They told me they appreciated my honesty, and they sounded sincere.
I really hope I get this job. I think I can really do a good job. I'm really glad that today is over and I get to go home now! Thank you everyone for supporting me in seeking this position. I appreciate your thoughts and prayers.
Posted by Joey at 03:59 AM | Comments (0)
March 06, 2003
Ute Hockey Discontinued
Just when I was starting to really like Hockey. I've been telling Janene for the last few months that we ought to go see a Ute Hockey game. Unfortunately, the University of Utah Skatin' Utes team has been suspended from the league by University Officials. They cited several past violations of University policy, including driving a rented van after midnight while on a roadtrip, allowing a high school student to play and travel with the team, and allowing two students to fly home from an away game in a private airplane (BYU Newsnet also claims that it's because of some things that our team did at games against BYU).
I heard about all this in a couple articles in the Utah Chronicle yesterday, and the BYU Newsnet article came out today.
Utah Chrony:
Officials Cut Ties With Hockey Club
The Chronicle's View: U Hockey Club's Untimely End
BYU Newsnet:
University of Utah drops hockey team
I'm really bummed about this. I wish I would've gone and seen them kick BYU's butts at least once. :(
Posted by Joey at 08:27 AM | Comments (0)
Counseling and Interviews
I signed up to see a Computer Science counselor next Tuesday. Applications for full major status are due toward the end of the semester, and I want to make sure I have all my hens in a row.
Speaking of Tuesday, that's the same day I'm scheduled to be interviewed for the position of UPC Technology Chair. I'm rather confident I'll get the job, but I'm still nervous any time I get interviewed. I'm always scared that I'll say something really stupid.
Janene's family is having a sort of crisis this week. One of their dogs, a rather large husky/malamute named Salter, has contracted a nasty gastro-intestinal disease. He's stopped eating and everyone is very worried that he may die soon. Janene's sister, Christene, is a veteranary technician, and is doing all she can to make him feel comfortable and give him the care he needs. The whole situation is causing some emotional tension in the home, and it may effect them financially as well, depending on how much it could cost to perform some of the procedures Salter may need. I would like to ask everyone to pray for Janene's family that they can make it through this.
Posted by Joey at 07:52 AM | Comments (1)
March 04, 2003
Iranian Perceptions of the Iraqi-American Conflict
I just got out of a lecture on campus by Dr. Nasser Hadian, who is a visiting professor at Columbia University. This lecture was part four of a series of guest lectures about the Iraqi-American conflict. You can get more information about the series on the University website. Dr Hadian is an expert on Iranian foreign policy, and gave a brief, yet thorough, overview of Iranian government and Iranian opinions about war in Iraq.
Because the Iranion government has over 30 political parties, the lecture seemed very scattered to me. Dr. Hadian attempted to split the different parties into two main categories, but even with this categorical distinction I still felt slightly overwhelmed by the number of things he was trying to explain one after the other. Because of this comprehensive explanation of how the Iranian government is organized, the lecture was not very captivating, and I noticed several people around me who were sleeping. I didn't fall asleep, but I did yawn several times. :)
I think the main point he was trying to make is that most of the people in Iran believe that the best thing to do in this situation is to remain completely neutral. They feel if they show any support for the U.S. that Saddam, in a last ditch attempt at getting revenge, will fire missiles at Tehran. These missiles could contain any number of biological weapons which would create a complete catastrophy, since the city of Tehran is home to over 10 million people.
Another concern of the people in Iran is that after the war the U.S. may attack them. Dr. Hadian dismissed this idea, claiming that after the U.S. takes out Iraq, President Bush will become too concerned about his re-election, and will turn to U.S. domestic issues such as the economy. It is not until Bush is re-elected that Iran really has to start worrying about a U.S. attack. Now, I know that the U.S. has declared North Korea and Syria as part of the "Axis of Evil", so I would imagine we would go after one of those two next. If anybody can explain to me why in the heck we would attack Iran, please do so in a comment.
All in all the lecture gave me a good understanding of what countries (not just Iran) near Iraq think about the whole conflict. Most of them want Saddam out, but they are afraid of how war will affect them.
Posted by Joey at 04:17 AM | Comments (4)
March 02, 2003
UPC Technology Chair?
I'm applying to be the Union Programming Council Technology Chair up at the University. The UPC organizes most of the events and activities that happen in and around the Union building. The Technology Chair is in charge of designing and maintaining the Union website (www.union.utah.edu) and keeping the UPC computers in good running condition.
I spent most of yesterday typing up a cover letter and a resume. It isn't due until Wednesday, March 5, but I think I'll turn it in on Monday. As far as I know there is no one else applying for the position, and I have the recommendation of the current Technology Chair. I don't want to get my hopes up all the way, but I am fairly certain I'll get the position.
As confident as I am, I would still like to ask everyone to pray for me. Please pray first of all that I will be able to get the job, and second that I will be able to live up to the expectations of the UPC and the Union staff. Thanks!
Posted by Joey at 02:08 AM | Comments (5)