Blog RA

2004-04-13T15:23:00.000-07:00

Blogra is dead.

2004-04-01T16:32:00.000-08:00

Bored Boy at Bush Rally

Read the article and check out the slide show of the kid falling asleep during the rally. It's pretty funny. What's also funny is that CNN accused Letterman of editing in the boy into the clip among other things.

2004-03-29T17:20:00.000-08:00

New California Quarter

"California's new quarter shows 19th century conservationist John Muir, Yosemite's Half Dome and a California condor on the coin's tails side. Los Angeles artist Garrett Burke produced the winning design." --from San Francisco Chronicle

Other designs that were entered in the contest:

With the Hollywood & Golden Gate Bridge coin, people outside California might think they were right next to each other.

2004-03-29T16:35:00.000-08:00

Soda Lids with music and video CDs on them

Ah, the marvels of modern technology.

2004-03-29T11:18:00.000-08:00

Ok, here are my superpower rankings:

1. Telekinesis
2. Mind reading
3. Teleportation
4. Prescience
5. X-ray vision
6. Flight
7. Invisibility
8. Regeneration
9. Super strength
10. Super hearing

These are open to debate. That is the point. Also, if RAs had superpowers, what would our RA superpowers be?

2004-03-29T10:13:00.000-08:00

March Madness Commercials

Here is my list of the top three commercials I cant stand during the tournament (I'm sure I forgot some atrocious ones so feel free to add your own)

3. McDonald's "I'm loving it" commercials. Whatever happened to Ronald, Hamburglar, and Grimace?

2. The Direct TV lets have some actor read these awful letters. Who is interested in hearing these?

1. Those NCAA "we have 3 billion student athletes and most are going pro in something other than sports." I cant stand these (I think I might dislike these more than Mark Prior and Posada combined). I know lots of football and basketball players who started playing because they wanted to be famous. And your a basketball player (majoring in psych is not part of your college identity).

I'm sick of the Microsoft office ones, but I don't mind them that much. I like the guy getting dunked with water.

And I like the Miller and Bud light commercials

2004-03-26T15:01:00.000-08:00

Greatest Voltron Ever

So which one do you like:

Vehicle Voltron

The Classic Lion Voltron

OR

Emmy Award Winning:
3-D Voltron

As a child I knew the most about Lion Voltron; however, I had a stong liking about Vehicle Voltron. Unfortunately, they hardly showed Vehicle Voltron. I always wanted to know more about Vehicle Voltron. I liked that they had many characters. Lion Voltron had only 7 crew members. I was also upset that in Lion Voltron they killed off the Blue Lion driver just so they could have a girl (i.e. the Princess) driving it (A move probably made for marketing purposes).

2004-03-26T14:51:00.000-08:00

An owl watching in on those Hooters

I think it's pretty ridiculous that people do these things especially when applicants are preparing for an interview.

2004-03-24T14:14:00.000-08:00

More Basketball Scholarships for Cal and Northwestern?

Perhaps, if some of the rules that the NCAA is proposing do come into effect.

2004-03-23T09:30:00.000-08:00

King of the RA Mountain

So Kirk and I were discussing who would win in an RA last man standing King of the Mountain event. The only thing I can say with certainty is that Kirk would not win after telling me he would betray me in the early going and seemed to think he could handle up to 5 others coming at him. But here is how I envision things going down.

-Kirk, brimming with misplaced self confidence, gets thrown out with ease by the rest of the group sick of his cocky attitude.
-Saumitra, not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings, jumps out of the ring
-Mike, relishing the opportunity to take out Geoff, jumps him from behind and tosses him out
-Paul, upset at Mike's dirty play, dispatches him with ease
-The rest of the group realizes Paul is still in the match and gang up to eliminate him
-Paul does not go quietly and takes Ashley with him
-Sandy and Golnaz team up to take out Chishen
-Meanwhile Edmund and Irene engage in a fierce battle, finally won by Edmund with his new skills from boot camp
-Sandy double crosses Golnaz, leaving herself and Edmund for the title
-Edmund plays out a methodical chess like battle, wearing down Sandy and taking the title of Fed King of the Mountain

or so he thinks

-the lights go on and Marc and Adam descend from the rafters and easily overwhelm Edmund ala the Bushwackers.
-Finally Marc and Adam fight it out in a cage match for the ultimate champ. However much as in Fantasy football this battle is a snoozer won by Marc almost by default.

2004-03-22T15:24:00.000-08:00

Sports Post: Stackhouse shows that when there is a will, there is a way

"Remember a few weeks ago, Jerry Stackhouse, who underwent knee surgery before the season, said he was shutting it down for the rest of the year. The Wizards said, no, you are not. And, as if to reinforce that, Jordan played Stackhouse 41 minutes in back-to-back games. So, Stack came up with another plan to reduce his workload. He told Jordan to bench him, let somebody else start and don’t play him until the second quarter. That way, Stackhouse is assured of keeping his minutes down. “I think this plan is going to work,” Stackhouse said."

The Daily NBA Gossip Column

2004-03-19T14:42:00.000-08:00

Oh my god! The Economics of Faking Orgasms.

Steven Landsberg, the arm-chair economist from Slate who wrote "Parents like Boys Better" and then later wrote Maybe Parents don't like Boys better has been on a dry run for the last six months, until he ran across this economic research paper that models the act of love making. Well, actually it models the act of faking of an orgasm. Here's an economic 'equilibrium' that he explains:

"Suppose Adam always suspects Eve of faking. Suppose Eve really hates it when Adam is wrong. Then since Adam always thinks she's faking, she has to keep faking to make him right. Eve's fakery reinforces Adam's skepticism and Adam's skepticism reinforces Eve's fakery, so we have what economists call equilibrium.

That's some weird-ass logic.

In the end, the paper can only conclude that there is a positive relationship between education and the tendency to fake. Take that anyway you want. :)

2004-03-18T23:14:00.000-08:00

Ashley: This one's for you

There have been slim picking this past week, mainly due to NCAA tourney brackets dominating the major news publications. But also, the journalism profession has got to be out on spring break. Why else does the NY Times run two articles on Tivo, 5 years after Tivo come out. Either that or they're seriously behind on the tech curve. I count at least half a dozen 'trends' that have already gone by: digital cameras... Kazaa... Ipod... Wi-Fi Internet... Camera phones... BLOGS... Don't be surprised if next week they start telling us about this 'Internet' phenomenon that's going to take over the world.

Now for an actual interesting post: Here's a list of the 100 most mis-pronounced words. Well, at least I find it interesting since I took speech classes in Elementary school (I spoke too fast and nobody could understand me.) Honestly, half of this list might be a sham. How do you not pronounce "Clothes" : "close"? And dammit, when I say "Doggy Dog World", I mean "Doggy Dog World", not "Dog Eat Dog World"!

Its actually kind of fun. February is a toughy. And there is only one 'a' in Triathlon. Finally, the list should be explanded to 101 words, to include "pop" & "coke", when you really mean "soda".

2004-03-17T16:12:00.000-08:00

Urinal at JFK causes controversey

Even though this design is controversial; maybe this will inspire other artists to use urinals as a new artistic canvas.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=1598&u=/fwd/unwired&printer=1

2004-03-15T10:24:00.000-08:00

Random Tournament Knowledge

Duke has had the privelege of playing the first two tournament games in the state of North Carolina in 2004, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999 and 1997. So far they are 17-1 in these games.

Every NCAA champion since 1966 had at least one first- round NBA pick on its team. (Before 1966, the NBA used territorial picks.)

(to be continued...)

2004-03-11T15:22:00.000-08:00

From some producer on espn.com. Now im clearly biased towards Bonds so I'm not going to argue Bonds v. Pujols, but i think his Ted Williams comment could be the worst point to strengthen an argument I have ever heard.

"Barry Bonds had a great season in 2003. How great? Was Bonds the best player in baseball? Was he the most valuable? Bonds was clearly the best from at-bat to at-bat, but despite posting one of the greatest Strat-o-Matic cards in 2003, Bonds simply did not play enough to be more valuable than Albert Pujols. Bonds only played in 130 games, racking up 135 fewer plate appearances than Pujols. Pujols accumulated more Runs Created than Bonds, but we can't end the comparison there, because the Giants were not given automatic outs in those 135 appearances. Due to Bonds' stature, the Giants had only Jeffrey Hammonds and Marvin Benard on the roster to replace him, and neither hit especially well. In all, Giant left fielders finished with a 10.52 mark in Runs Created Per 27 Outs, much lower than Bonds' 15.11. Pujols finished the season at 10.79 slightly higher than the mark of Giant left fielders. In 1943, Ted Williams was clearly the best player in baseball, having won the Triple Crown the previous season. Due to World War II, Williams did not play in a single game in 1944, and received no accolades despite clearly being the best player. He "would have" deserved the MVP award if he'd played more (or at all), just like Barry Bonds "would have" won the 2003 MVP if he'd played more."

2004-03-10T15:40:00.000-08:00

The Paradox of Choice

This pseudo-book review (disclaimer: It's from the New Yorker) tries to touch all the bases of behavorial economics and harp in some social commentary. Here are some snippets:

"Research has made it clear that most people are terrible choosers. The evidence is all around us, from restaurant-goers’ complaints that “the menu is too long” to Michael Jackson’s face. Wanting is “a prediction of liking.” Predictions are often biased, and predictions of one’s feelings are more biased than most. "

The article tries to explain this 'paradox' by using opportunity costs. This is where the logic, predictably, gets a little hairy. He argues that more choices present us with "a wider range of slightly inferior options, making it harder to settle on one you’re happy with." In other words, its more difficult to come to the optimal choice.

But it seems to me that anything that lowers your opportunity costs should make your decision making process easier. Maybe I'm mis-reading here.

It continues that we are a society of unhappy 'maximizers'. It offers that we should be "content with the merely excellent as opposed to the absolute best." Wow.

And then it tries to scare us:

"It helps explain why so many people at age thirty are still flailing about, trying
to choose a career—and why so many marriageable singles wind up alone. You
await a spouse who combines the kindness of your mom, the wit of the smartest
person you met in grad school, and the looks of someone you dated in 1983 (as she
was in 1983) . . . and you wind up spending middle age by yourself, watching the
Sports Channel at 2 a.m. in a studio apartment strewn with pizza boxes. "

2004-03-10T14:56:00.000-08:00

But dont worry,"The exoskeleton is not going to magically transform people into killing machines,"

2004-03-09T10:23:00.000-08:00

Hum, A for stupidity i suppose. I hope they send this down the exhibit so we can see in what ways it is a fake.

2004-03-08T12:12:00.008-08:00

Chavey says: Be a Bad Ass!

Barry Zito is one weird dude.

With pitching coach Rick Peterson gone, my favorite Oakland A Hippie gonna do whatever he wants. First he's going to change his form, so he can throw the ball harder. That doesn't sound like the greatest idea to me, considering his best pitch is his curve ball.

Secondly, he's going to be "more of a Bad-ass" this year like Derek Lowe, F. Garcia & Pedro. Derek Lowe??? Correct me if I'm wrong, but I didn't know Derek Lowe was a bad-ass. And apparently this whole "Bad-ass" bit came about because Chavey told him so.

So the question is, who is the biggest Bad-Ass on the Mound? (Hint: It starts with "B" & ends in Unit)

2004-03-08T11:28:00.000-08:00

Taking a shower

BBC NEWS | Africa | 'Smelly' Kenyan given public wash

2004-03-08T10:20:00.000-08:00

SI's Peter King on Mike Bibby

In Peter King's Monday Morning QB article (in the 10 Things I Think I Think subsection) on SI.com he says:

"Every time I see Mike Bibby in a highlight, I wonder why people don't talk about him as one of the top four or five players in basketball. "

Chishen, I think more and more people are starting to agree with Paul.

Mike Bibby for President!!

2004-03-08T10:03:00.000-08:00

Poll: Who should play Daisy Duke, Britney or Jessica?

link

I think Britney was made for this part.

2004-03-05T15:40:00.000-08:00

Saumitra been moonlighting??

I think Saumitra has two jobs. Here is a profile of Alice Waters (founder of Chez Panisse and prominent food activist). If you look at the second page of this article, the article describes her competition:

"One afternoon while waiting to meet Waters, I sized up her competition: the Snack Shack, a dilapidated outdoor stand, is the only place ... students can currently buy lunch."

Saumitra, are you selling your unnutritional food to Berkeley middle school Students?

2004-03-03T17:20:00.000-08:00

My favorite question is:

8. How many points does a 3-point field goal account for in a Basketball Game?
a. 1
b. 2
c. 3
d. 4
(nice link, mike)

2004-03-03T15:30:00.000-08:00

JFK

Screw pollsters. Screw Iowa Markets. John Kerry was a top the inaugural "Moore Democratic-Nomination Power Rankings" and stayed there until real work required that the whiteboard be erased. Even through the H. Dean brewhah, and the Wes Clark fiasco (so disappointing), I don't believe Kerry ever dropped out the Top 3. Not even Kerry's "presidential" appearance could sway the sophisticated Power Ranking algorithm.

2004-03-03T11:44:00.000-08:00

Crude Humor Post: I apologize in advance

This is an article written in the Stanford Daily by a 20 year old Stanford sophmore about March Madness. It's a lame, boring and arrogant piece of editorial writing. And of course, he comes up with this crude, offensive, but somewhat funny one-liner:

"TV commentators love to go on and on about Duke’s academic prowess in addition to their athletic skill, as if being called “the Harvard of the South” wasn’t an insult. That’s like ... having the largest penis in Japan. (or being the coolest kid at Stanfurd.)"

2004-03-03T10:40:00.000-08:00

New age recruiting...

Basketball on an Aircraft carrier!

2004-03-01T14:12:00.000-08:00

Don't try this at home

Here is an innovative way to take a sick day when you have none left.article.

2004-03-01T13:16:00.000-08:00

Thanks Jackie!

Or maybe it was someone else...but I got my check for $13.68 in the mail from www.musicCDsettlement.com. Sweet!

2004-02-27T13:58:00.000-08:00

Wow, the UN just keep finding new ways to lose my respect. On finding out that Blair's government had tapped Kofi Annan's office at the UN headquarters, Fred Eckhard, assistant to Kofi Annan, had this to say: "We're throwing down the red flag and saying that if this is true, please stop it." Please stop it? Like, please stop walking all over us, but we won't do anything if you do? Oy.

2004-02-26T09:26:00.000-08:00

A friend sent me this:

"
haha, read this, what pedro said about manny:

"I know there's been a lot of talk regarding Nomar and
Manny," Martinez said. "But Manny's in La La Land. I
haven't talked to Manny in a month, month and a half.
So I don't expect Manny to talk. Manny never talks. He
doesn't even know where he's standing. But one thing
he does know is how to hit, and how to play the game."
"

2004-02-25T13:46:00.000-08:00

RA Caption Contests II Results

Entries

Kirk: "I know you are laughing at me and not with me, but that is better than when you ignored me completely."

Chishen: 14:55....14:56...14:57....14:58.....

Mike: Kirk sucks.

Paul: "My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard.Damn rights its better than yous. I could teach you but I have to charge....."

Winner:

14:55....14:56...14:57....14:58.....

Chishen wins. Congrats Chishen...you get two free granola bars of your choice from the Snack Shack.

2nd: Paul & Kirk tie, one granola bar each

3rd:

4th: Mike

2004-02-25T13:23:00.000-08:00

Loo With a View

Have you ever wanted to take care of business in the middle of the street, but were too shy to do so? Worried that people might stare at you? Well, your problems are solved. Introducing a toilet with a view!

2004-02-25T09:12:00.000-08:00

Call me G-Mac

I'll be the first to admit, that when they started calling Tracy McGrady "T-Mac", and Allen Iverson "AI", I thought it was fine. "KG" for Kevin Garnett is acceptable too. But things are out of control now. When they called Jason Williams "J-Will", things started to go downhill. Then I heard someone call Jason Richardson "J-Rich". That goes too far. This guy isn't even a star. Anyways, the last straw was last night. I was watching ESPN for some reason and they called Richard Jefferson "R-Jeff", which has to be the stupidest name I have ever heard. I am boycotting pro-basketball until they use real names again.

On the other hand, what if we used this convention for our own names...

"S-Saw"
"K-Moe"
"G-Mac"
"C-Way"

2004-02-25T08:51:00.000-08:00

These are some pretty sweet shirts; perhaps we could use them as basketball/kickball/work uniforms

http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/shopping/product/detailmain.jsp?itemID=3740&itemType=PRODUCT&iMainCat=163&iSubCat=173&iProductID=3740

2004-02-24T16:32:00.000-08:00

Presidential prediction: Republicans win by a landslide (Link). Say it ain't so! Note though, his model failed in the last election with Bush Sr.

2004-02-24T14:42:00.000-08:00

Mike,

I think you're right about those Quiznos Ads
Still, I'm not sure that a Spongemonkey makes me think of appetizing food, but they are pretty funny.

2004-02-24T14:07:00.000-08:00

Josh Childress is projected to be the 16th pick on this mock draft. He is listed at 6-8, 200 lbs, compared to Pippen, who is 6-8 238 lbs. He shoots almost 50% from the field, including 42% 3-pointers and 80% free throws, and plays very good defense. Plus his 'fro adds like 4 inches.

2004-02-24T09:57:00.000-08:00

I've been waiting a long time for this to happen

Who would ever want to get a marriage proposal at a sports event in front of tens of thousands of people? Nobody wants to see this! What a total buzz kill. Maybe now people will get a freakin' clue and stop this idiotic behavior.

Girlfriend serves up the Facial!

2004-02-24T09:28:00.000-08:00

courtesy of jim caple:

"OAKLAND: The Athletics held fundamental drills, working on various techniques for missing home plate, including stopping three steps in front of home to argue with the umpire, side-stepping home plate to shove the catcher from behind when he's not looking and not sliding ... General manager Billy Beane explained how to clone human embryos ... "

2004-02-23T09:32:00.000-08:00

Wow. Is Portis still number 1, Kirk?

Portis to Washington

2004-02-23T08:39:00.000-08:00

So after reading the shocking news that neither Clemens nor Petite, but some kid named Oswalt will be starting for Houston opening day, I thought of a question:

If you could have any guy in the league, who would be your five man rotation for an entire season. I need to think about it so I will post my picks soon.

2004-02-22T14:55:00.000-08:00

2004-02-20T16:18:00.000-08:00

Sports Post: NBA Clutch statistics

"Hey Bobby, you know who the real clutch player on this team is, right?"

The sports debate that often occurs on the East side of the F-E-D undoubtably turns to the discussion of 'clutchness' or ability during crunch time. Of course, this very difficult to measure in the game of basketball. USA today throws out some random 'clutch' statistics.

NBA Crunch-time statistical leaders

2004-02-20T14:23:00.000-08:00

Why do Sex and the City's producers hate their creations?

I don't really understand this article since I don't watch the show. But I thought at least Jackie would be interested.
Link

2004-02-20T14:16:00.000-08:00

Curry Kit Kats

Lemon cheesecake, that I can understand. But curry flavored Kit-Kats?

2004-02-20T11:56:00.000-08:00

Sports Post: For the RSN out there

Just in case you missed it, Smack-talk quote of the week:

"We understand that John Henry must be embarrassed, frustrated and disappointed by his failure in this transaction. Unlike the Yankees, he chose not to go the extra distance for his fans in Boston. It is time to get on with life and forget the sour grapes."

- The Boss

I think the ESPN link should have read: Steinbrenner on Henry's beef: "Shut the f** up"

2004-02-20T10:44:00.000-08:00

Controversy in West Texas

As a Texan, I feel that I probably had a chance to get a scholarship to this school.

Link

2004-02-20T00:00:00.000-08:00

In honor of dumb/amusing sites, here are two of my favorites (some of you guys have seen these): ninjas and illmatic.

2004-02-19T14:25:00.000-08:00

Go to Google, type "weapons of mass destruction," and instead of clicking the regular search bar, click on "i'm feeling lucky."

Does anyone have an idea what the "I'm feeling lucky" bar even does?

2004-02-19T10:00:00.000-08:00

Comparison between New York Yankees and Real Madrid

The BBC shows how the two teams compare in terms of payroll, among other things. Adam is the one that actually found this article.

Link

2004-02-18T13:10:00.000-08:00

Dear Fed Friends,

I saw no post today so I thought I'd let you guys know how the Chicago trip is going. I fly back to San Francisco tonight.

Some Highlights:

I visted Adam at the University of Chicago. I actually went to his apartment. His place was nice. His apartment is just south of the university and on the sixth floor which leads to an amazing view. From all his windows you could see University (which is really pretty) in the foreground with the Sears Tower in the background.
At Giradano's, Adam completed one the greatest pizza feat I have ever seen. He ate 4 slices of a large Chicago Style Pizza in 15 minutes. On the other hand it took me an hour and a half to go through four slices.

I also visted the Chicago Fed. I have to go so I will let you know more about the Chicago Fed when I come back. Later,

Saumitra

2004-02-17T09:08:00.000-08:00

Question:

Vin Diesel or The Rock?

I'm more a Rock guy myself.

2004-02-17T08:10:00.000-08:00

Don't know who to vote for?

The good people at AOL News and TIME have teamed up to bring us this nifty little 'President Match' gizmo that spits out the presidential candidate who most closely matches your views based on a few questions.

Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match

Warning: The algorithm's elementary weighting scheme may cause shocking results. When in doubt (or, more importantly, if your views differ from mine), please, for the good of the country, DO NOT vote in actual elections. Thank you.

2004-02-13T15:40:00.000-08:00

Saumitra's NBA All-Star Weekend Predictions

Chishen is at Jam Session in LA. I just wanted to pass along my predictions for Saturday night's contests.

Sprite Rising Star Contest
Winner: Ricky Davis
2nd: Chris Anderson
3rd: Jason Richardson
4th: Fred Jones

Foot Locker 3 Point Contest
Winner: Billups
2nd: Peja
3rd: Mobley
4th: Lewis

989 Sports Skills Challenge
Winner: Boykins
2nd: Payton
3rd: Marbury
4th: Davis

RadioShack Shooting Stars
Winner: Clippers (a lot to prove)
2nd: Detroit
3rd: Lakers
4th: San Antonio

2004-02-13T11:26:00.000-08:00

"For 20 years, he found himself drawn to pornographic Web sites, movies and magazines, he said. He would get up at night, telling his wife he needed to study, and would surf the Internet for porn. Later, he would spend hours accessing porn sites from the computer in his church office.

'You go take a shower, clean up and say you'll never do it again. Yet the next day, you fall right back into it,' he said. "

This sounds to me like admission of a whole lot more than just looking at porn. Can they write this in the newspaper? Yiipes.

2004-02-12T21:54:00.000-08:00

if you're bored.Link

2004-02-12T12:12:00.000-08:00

Dallas billboards target Christians addicted to porn

Quote: "Her gift for Valentines? Stop looking at porn."

link

2004-02-12T11:33:00.001-08:00

Sports Post: Sabermetrics for Basketball

Erick Dampier "definitely has some kind of negative influence," Beech says.

Here's a long article profiling a basketball sabermetrician, with mostly Warrior's references. His 'formula' is essentially +/- on-court/off-court ... which I believe is often used in Hockey.

While the article is rather tedious, his website is information overload: www.82games.com

Truthfully, I just wanted to post the Dampier photo w/ that caption.

2004-02-12T10:49:00.000-08:00

YES!!!! Ken is single now!!!! Time to make my move...

Linked

2004-02-12T10:19:00.000-08:00

Chicago Passion vs Dallas Desire-----US to run Lingerie Football League

Linked

Hmmm...coincidence? I don't think so: Thief had an eye for fine lingerie

2004-02-12T09:52:00.000-08:00

BlogRa's first political post

'Bush and I were lieutenants'

First off, I wanted to say that this witch hunt, is a crock of S**T. BUT, I decided to link because it's buried in the editorial section of the Washington Post. Essentially, Col. William Campenni tells us that Bush served in the National Guard. Of course nobody disputes this ... so really it becomes his personal ramble/defense of the National Guard ... which surprisingly is still rather informative.

Of course, he is unable to address the real issue of ARF, as it is clearly laid out at Calpundit: link

2004-02-12T09:13:00.000-08:00

Taking off your shoes? Whhaatt?

I thought this post would be especially informative for movie date nights.

Rituals of Movie Date Night REVEALED

2004-02-11T15:31:00.000-08:00

Granola Shack?

Is it me, or has the snack shack's product line been shrinking dramatically? All there has been for months have been Granola bars. Well, starting Tuesday, Snack Shack East will be unveiling a new line of products - single serving Haribo gummy bears! For the low, low price of $.15 each. Initial inventory should be about 50, so line up early on Tuesday morning!

2004-02-11T13:18:00.000-08:00

Still looking for a Valentine's Day Present?

Pirate Bath Goodies

2004-02-11T11:11:00.000-08:00

Sports Post: The Kings are turning into the Jazz

Slow day on the Blog front, so I'm posting something about the Kings for you NBA fanatics out there.

Jazz up the offense: Kings become one of NBA's best at the pick and roll

2004-02-10T16:12:00.000-08:00

From the Rumor Mill

Saumitra Saha, CEO of SnakShaq, has plans to purchase a liquor license, a source close to the embroiled demagogue has told me. Amid stiff competition from the drinking fountain and rumors of a hostile takeover by Edmund, Mr. Saha feels his business needs a fresh direction in order to keep loyal customers Paul and Geoff.

2004-02-10T13:24:00.000-08:00

Saumitra's Rant of the Day

First off im still hurt about my lack of inclusion into the blog. But i have successfully infiltrated your group.

Second, You guys should check this out. Click on the commercial links. I dont think we have access at work, but man these things are so funny.
Linkified - again.

Third, Geoff, I know I already told you at lunch, but for those not in attendance. Really should TiVo Smallville, 8pm on Wed, WB. In fact just TiVo all of the WB, you can't really go wrong.

2004-02-10T11:31:00.000-08:00

San Francisco Chronicle's List of Good Bargain Restaurants

Hey Paul, FYI: Eric's and Tommy's Joynt are both on the list

Linkified

2004-02-10T10:38:00.000-08:00

So, here are the logins that have already been taken: garfield, heyhey, whoanelly, gack! (actually, I wasn't allowed to use "!"), hmmm, hmmmm, hmmmmm, and hmmmmmm. I feel like I've lost parts of my identity.

2004-02-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

My TiVo List

I paid all this money for a TiVo, and now I realize that I only watch a few non-sports programs. Here is my list of programs for which I have season passes. As you can see it is a rather short list. Are there any great shows that I am missing? I do not have HBO or the other premium channels, or I would include Curb You Enthusiasm as well.

1. Arrested Development
2. The Daily Show
3. The Simpsons (new episodes only)

2004-02-10T09:47:00.000-08:00

What? St. Louis Fed Forecast!

Brief From
Fed Forecasts Could Hold Rate Clues
By: John M. Berry
Published: February 6, 2004
In: Bloomberg.com

Different Methods

Just as the Fed officials' forecasts differ, so do their methods for arriving at them.

William Poole, president of the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank, who has described himself at a "consumer of forecasts, not a producer of forecasts,'' doesn't attempt to do his own.

Robert Rasche, research director at the St. Louis Fed, said in an interview that a large number of outside forecasts are pulled together and from them Poole selects the figures he submits. Poole's numbers "are not the result of any unique model- based forecasting approach,'' Rasche said.

In Minneapolis, Fed President Gary Stern has a sort of open-door approach to forecasting. Anyone at his bank who wishes to contribute ideas and analysis is welcome to do so.

"Economists can bring their numbers and their thoughts to Gary and he comes up with his view,'' spokesman David Fettig said in an interview. "It's very collegial.''

Econometric Models

At some of the other Fed banks, including San Francisco, Boston and Atlanta, the forecasts are based on econometric models.

Economist George Kahn of the Kansas City Fed said in an interview that about 15 economists in the bank's research department get together "to produce a judgmental forecast that is informed by econometric models.'' The group then meets with the bank's president, Thomas M. Hoenig, for a discussion. "Tom adds his own judgment,'' and the numbers go to Washington, he said.

The six Fed Board members in Washington also approach their forecasting chores in a variety of ways.

2004-02-09T16:49:00.000-08:00

Gross out medical story of the day . . . Link

2004-02-09T14:26:00.000-08:00

Why I don't want to be a lawyer:

Apparently, being a lawyer isn't as much fun as it is cracked out to be. Some disgruntled associates tell their tales of horror, including 2600 billable hours requirements, and no free shoe-shines.

Also, here is a nice memo written by a paralegal when asked to find out where to get good sushi in New York. Apparently it caused quite a stir.

2004-02-09T13:54:00.000-08:00

San Francisco sure has some interesting events for Valentine's Day.
The vampire tour caught my eye . . .

http://www.sfgate.com/listings/macroevent.php?events,m115

2004-02-09T12:34:00.000-08:00

College Laundry Days

Remember the good 'ol days when you'd get the stiffed at the laundry room?

Not anymore: Watch the web

2004-02-09T12:27:00.000-08:00

Sport post: Baseball stat-head turns his eyes towards basketball

Aaron makes an argument for Adj FG% vs. the traditional FG%. Although his argument has merit, I'm not sure exactly how much merit it has. Aaron's Baseball Blog

2004-02-09T11:00:00.000-08:00

Here is the maiden post to get us started:

Rental Recommendation Algorithm: WhattoRent.com

This is what the computer has spit out so far:

Geoff: Lolita, Big Lebowski
Irene: Friday
Chishen: From Dusk til Dawn.

What did you guys turn up?