Category: Living

Living by Joe WilcoxNov 12, 20051:12 pm

The Chair

In the winter of 1996, the World Wide Web had drawn big attention, but few businesses opened online shops. I placed an order that thoroughly amazed me, and later disappointed, because this one outfit did so well and I’ve rarely seen such good service since.

My family lived in northern Maine, returned home for what would prove only to be an 18-month adventure. I needed a new chair for my office, and the local stores sold selection that, well, failed to impress. Catalog ordering meant three weeks to delivery, according to the local office supply store, and I was too impatient.

Econolypse by Joe WilcoxNov 12, 20059:55 am

The Housing Bubble Pops

Serious are the signs that the housing bubble has started rapid deflation here in the Washington, D.C., area. Summer 2004, my family chose not to purchase a house in Bowie, Md., because, even then, I was convinced that housing prices were way over-inflated. Since, I’ve warned plenty of people the end would rapidly come.

Earlier, I expected the housing bubble to stay inflated into 2006, but Hurricane Katrina’s widespread economic rumblings appear to have put on the squeeze. As recently as October, New York-market deflation forebode coming trouble.

Living by Joe WilcoxOct 18, 20053:02 pm

New TV Commercial Tuesday

Now that Apple has a store selling videos, I’m wondering if there should be some other content for download. I’m thinking TV commercials. There are certainly some TV ads that are fun to watch and […]

Money by Joe WilcoxOct 15, 20057:55 pm

It's Just Too Easy

Yesterday, I received a postal mail offer from one of the local car dealers for a pre-approved auto loan. The paper had a toll-free number to call with a code to get the loan amount. Being in a curious mood, I rang and discovered that (supposedly) I was pre-approved for $22,500. Walk in and walk out with a car, no money down.

We drive a clunker 1989 Volvo 740 that my wife curses almost everyday. So the idea of a new car is appealing, and $22,500 is lots of spending power. It’s a helluva lot of debt, too. As momentarily tempted as I was, no car loan. We’ll drive the clunker and get by.

Culture by Joe WilcoxOct 14, 200510:11 pm

The Corporate Cycle of Life

Yesterday, I had an engaging IM conversation with Nate Mook of Betanews fame about companies and how they operate. The topic had been Microsoft and its position with respect to younger companies. The IM exchange below picks up where Nate speaks of a book he is reading.

Apple by Joe WilcoxOct 4, 20053:45 pm

The Bronchitis Post

I have been sick with bronchitis, which has screwed up my day job work schedule and affected posting here. But I got some prescription drugs from the doctor today and expect recovery in a few days. I take an eclectic approach today.

Apple by Joe WilcoxSep 27, 20053:53 pm

Greed Killed the Trojan Horse

Seems like Apple and music labels are on collision course as iTunes contract renewals approach. Steve Jobs called record labels “greedy“, over alleged plans to move digital downloads to a tiered pricing model. Right now, iTunes buyers pay a 99-cent flat rate for singles, while most albums sell for $9.99. Apple does bundle some singles with music videos for $1.99.

So, I had thought Steve Jobs was being just a wee bit over the top, until a few days later when Warner Music Group CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. said during an investors conference: “We are selling our songs through iPod, but we don’t have a share of iPod’s revenue. We want to share in those revenue streams” [source Red Herring]. Ah, yeah.

Photo by Joe WilcoxSep 25, 20052:43 pm

Backyard Bunny

As mentioned yesterday, I returned to using a PowerBook, the same one let go just a few months ago. One reason the temporary switch was so dumb: Somehow when backing up the contents some error occurred that I missed. The “2005” folder containing all pictures taken this year didn’t copy. So, when wiping the PowerBook’s hard drive, I inadvertently deleted thousands of irreplaceable photos, the majority taken with a Nikon D70. Bummed is too weak a word to describe my reaction.

Culture by Joe WilcoxSep 21, 20055:58 am

Math Racial Profiling

A few years ago, I was appalled to read a New York Times story about a proposed new math program for New York schools that would promote guessing as a means of doing math. Kids would learn a way of estimating answers. The rationale was to cater to minority students, many of them Hispanics.

I read in shock. The whole concept of estimation made no sense to me. Worse, it looked to me like the liberal school system was really doing racial profiling, essentially saying the minorities are too stupid to learn basic math. Geez, get a life.

Aspiration by Joe WilcoxSep 17, 20059:21 pm

Design Matters

Last night, during an IM conversation with Nate Mook (of Betanews fame), he broached the topic of smiles, saying Apple’s little iPod nano makes people smile. It’s just so damn cute. So are babies, for that matter, and they make people smile, too. Coocheecoo!

Politics by Joe WilcoxSep 12, 20058:57 pm

Well, I’m Impressed

Traveling today, I got lots of chances to see the John Roberts’ senate confirmation hearing. I normally wouldn’t have time. But the hearing played all over Dulles airport, while I waited for my plane, and […]

Events by Joe WilcoxSep 7, 20055:32 pm

What’s Up with all These Planes going Down?

File this under scary. Today, Reuters cited sources giving an eerie explanation for the crash of a Helios airliner last month in Greece: Confused pilots. The tragedy had been confusing from the start, because the flight crew and most of the passengers appeared to be unconscious when the Boeing 737 ran out of fuel and crashed. De-pressurization was a leading suspected cause of the crash.

Reuters, citing a story in International Herald Tribune, claims that a maintenance crew left a pressurization control knob undone. The pilots missed this and misunderstood a pressurization warning alarm. Apparently, the cabin never pressurized at all.