tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40961532024-02-28T14:03:36.929-05:00Chris Noto's WeblogThings of interest, a day to day story, sometimes including photos, videos, or other links.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-58144273075859706462011-03-14T20:44:00.000-04:002011-03-14T20:45:00.601-04:00I waited too long!Another Chris Noto got my domain name!Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-11813322225856733942010-05-08T04:16:00.002-04:002010-05-08T04:21:13.047-04:00Rainbow Cichlids, Busy at 4:16 a.m.I woke up, thirsty, and wound up sitting here in the kitchen, with the computer on. I just looked up at the ten gallon tank with five nine month old Rainbow Cichlids, Herotilapia multispinosa, in it, to see them, very shy in the daytime, cavorting freely, and in fine, full color. Amazing.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-29262802159271282422010-05-04T22:04:00.003-04:002010-05-04T22:12:23.422-04:00My First Try at an Old Aquascaping IdeaToday, for the first time ever, I made a moss covered piece of driftwood. I was inspired to do so by Jason Baliban's presentation at Sunday's meeting of the Atlanta Area Aquarium Associsation, at which he delivered a Power Point presentation on the basics of the aquascapers' art, and then aquascaped a moderate sized aquarium, from the bare tank, up. <br /><br />I did my bit of elementary aquascaping, this evening, by wrapping clumps of good old fashioned Java Moss around a branch, tying dark, heavy cotton thread to the branch, and then wrapping the thread in a spiral over the moss. A couple of such passes, one on each of two sides of the branch, sufficed for a pretty good cover. Then a few snips with scissors, where the moss came up in obvious loops between the wrappings of thread, served to obscure a good bit of the man made nature of the artifact. Fun. Easy. Pretty. Pictures to come.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-48714048273136625252010-01-30T11:02:00.003-05:002010-01-30T11:08:00.530-05:00Pee-wee Gets an iPad!I've loved Pee-wee since the Eighties, when our whole family watched Pee-wee's Playhouse every Saturday morning. I'm so jealous that he got an iPad before I did!<object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" height="328" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf"><param name="flashvars" value="key=f7a03edbd7"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><embed flashvars="key=f7a03edbd7" allowfullscreen="true" quality="high" src="http://player.ordienetworks.com/flash/fodplayer.swf" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" height="328" width="512"></embed></object><div style="text-align: center; width: 512px;"><a href="http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/f7a03edbd7/pee-wee-gets-an-ipad" title="from Pee-wee Herman and Eric Appel">Pee-wee Gets An iPad!</a> from <a href="http://www.funnyordie.com/peewee_herman">Pee-wee Herman</a></div>Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-71534398196842283692010-01-14T21:18:00.002-05:002010-01-14T21:22:18.287-05:00Me and the ScorpionWhen I was about ten or eleven years old, my family took a trip to Hot Springs, Arkansas. I remember my brother Frank and I prowling the area around the motel we were staying in. I turned over a piece of shale, and found a scorpion, which promptly stung me. It burned like anything, which scared me greatly, 'cause I didn't know how potent the toxin was. Probable Truth: under the influence of scarey Western Movie Nonsense, I thought I might die if untreated.<br /><br />My dad, though, was pretty much guaranteed to fly into a rage if I came clean with the fact that I'd gotten stung. So, real casual-like, I initiated a conversation with the adults in the group about scorpions, and real, real casually checked out what they knew about scorpion stings. It sounded to me like it was about as bad as a bee sting, so I decided not to say anything further on the subject. I'll never forget the day, though.<br /><br />Here's the guy who got me: "The only scorpion known to occur in Arkansas . . . the common striped bark scorpion."<br /><br /><img class="postimg" src="http://www.uark.edu/ua/arthmuse/images/museum_notes/sco100a.jpg" alt="http://www.uark.edu/ua/arthmuse/images/museum_notes/sco100a.jpg" /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.uark.edu/ua/arthmuse/scorpion.html">"Death and severe allergic reactions have been attributed to the striped bark scorpions, but such claims have never been substantiated by reputable sources."</a>Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-43508445624085054962010-01-03T21:19:00.002-05:002010-01-03T21:23:14.515-05:00Bruce Sterling: State of the World 2010They've been doing <a href="http://www.well.com/conf/inkwell.vue/topics/373/Bruce-Sterling-State-of-the-Worl-page01.html">this</a> for eleven years now, at the beginning of every year. It happens on The Well, one of the earliest open-to-the-public Internet communities. Chairman Bruce, as he's known to old-hand science fiction fans whose memories go back to the first days of the cyberpunk movement, plays Delphic Oracle. All the rest of us get to ask questions, and kibbitz. Thoughtful, challenging, wonderful, fun.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-23940809123782675422009-09-03T18:15:00.004-04:002009-09-21T13:55:43.463-04:00My Planted 10 Gallon Aquarium<div style="float: right; margin-left: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/46923002@N00/3799419650/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2585/3799419650_ca9807f7e0_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: 2px solid rgb(0, 0, 0);" /></a><br /><span style="margin-top: 0px;font-size:0.9em;" ><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/46923002@N00/3799419650/">My Planted 10 Gallon Aquarium</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/46923002@N00/"></a></span></div>The floating Amazon Frogbit, Limnobium laevigatum, was thriving then, along with the Hygrophila corymbosa to the right, the Hygrophila difformis, the taller plant on the left, and the Dwarf Amazon Swordplant, Echinodorus tenellus, in the foreground. There is also a tiny bit of the formerly dominant Myriophyllum matogrossense, a lacy bunch plant, in lower center right.<br /><br />This was all grown using fermented-yeast-and-sugar DIY CO2, though I've since switched over to pressurized CO2 setup with a tank, regulator, pH probe and controller. My lighting is two 5500k 13 watt screw-in compact fluorescent bulbs in the original equipment somewhat funky plastic hood. I use Seachem liquid fertilizers.<br /><br />The vertebrate population includes one male Platinum Guppy, who shows up as a blur about halfway from top to bottom, almost to the left margin of the tank. Also, five Neon Tetras, three Corydoras trilineatus, one Siamese Algae Eater, and two Badis badis. There were a couple of large pond snails, but I guess they died of old age. No other invertebrates that I know of.<br /><br />This shot is, so far, the height of my artistry as a planted aquarium geek.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-28557330691692671822009-08-18T17:23:00.006-04:002009-08-18T17:30:29.928-04:00Fun with German Guppy EnthusiastsI've been doing a bit of browsing just now, and wound up following a link from a blog I discovered a while back, <a href="http://guppyfocus.blogspot.com/">Guppyfocus</a>. This guy does some very interesting crosses, and also posts pictures of visits to the fishrooms of other breeders.<br /><br /><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9DPnQy3dGf8L7hyphenhyphenn1prI7Z4pEFmOM9-uzu-2-U31a0_WbVvQf0cp1eevCDMpEI8tavf6WSpH-arvPTglYPcNPukvLoD_Vu06D8q-NFSjVtf2uflhAjEcq6h9rW7ae5RejlowV/s400/magenta_partial_albino.jpg" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5365080658043134066" style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; width: 400px; height: 300px; text-align: center;" alt="" border="0" /><br />The fish above is from his most recent blog post, titled "piebald reticulata".<br /><br />The first link a the forum is <a href="http://74.125.65.132/translate_c?hl=en&sl=de&tl=en&u=http://www.guppytreff-berlin.de/cgi-bin/xps1/index.cgi%3Faction%3Dforum%26board%3Dfoto5%26op%3Ddisp%26num%3D181&prev=hp&rurl=translate.google.com&usg=ALkJrhgrrvBA7fD3RDCPD7AEYf75_DOUoQ">this</a>, a thread that shows pictures of Tobi's, the Guppyfocus guy's, fishroom. The last pic in the series is interesting, as Tobi has mentioned a "Channa" that he feeds culled guppies to. It's a nice little planted tank, and I think you can see the snakehead hovering in mid-tank. According to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channa_argus">this link</a>, this may be the fish that has been terrorizing anglers in my brother's suburban D.C. area in recent years.<br /><br />Next, <a href="http://74.125.65.132/translate_c?hl=en&sl=de&tl=en&u=http://www.guppytreff-berlin.de/cgi-bin/xps1/index.cgi%3Faction%3Dforum%26op%3Ddisp%26board%3Dfoto1%26num%3D324&prev=hp&rurl=translate.google.com&usg=ALkJrhhrXSujF-hSQE5M7Mch9f8TbHepWw">a thread</a> in which a young woman guppy breeder shares a series of shots of a group of male guppies, posing the group a puzzle as to how, genetically, she reached their phenotype, genetics-talk for their appearance.<br /><br />Finally, here's the forum's "<a href="http://74.125.65.132/translate_c?hl=en&sl=de&tl=en&u=http://www.guppytreff-berlin.de/cgi-bin/xps1/index.cgi%3Faction%3Dnone%26page%3Dpage&prev=hp&rurl=translate.google.com&usg=ALkJrhjhQNm4CsBvxAtY9wFMZduUSczAfA">portal</a>" page, pumped through Google Translate.<br /><br />Wait, there's more! They're like peanuts, I can't stop. Two amazing "<a href="http://74.125.65.132/translate_c?hl=en&sl=de&tl=en&u=http://www.guppytreff-berlin.de/cgi-bin/xps1/index.cgi%3Faction%3Dpicgal%26op%3Dview%26cat%3D3%26alb%3D1%26id%3D11&prev=hp&rurl=translate.google.com&usg=ALkJrhiHY9gMIQrrDPy7202Y-AOdbfqb4g">Pink Moscow Males</a>". I hope you enjoyed the tour.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-91999627574394484902009-05-21T14:45:00.003-04:002009-05-21T14:51:04.006-04:00Reggaeton Music Video: Don Omar - The Chosen & Virtual DivaI was directed to this by <a href="http://twitter.com/bruces">Bruce Sterling's twitter stream</a>.<br /><br /><a href="http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=53961012">Don Omar - The Chosen & Virtual Diva [ IDON : System Upgrade ]</a><br /><object width="425" height="360"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><param name="movie" value="http://mediaservices.myspace.com/services/media/embed.aspx/m=53961012,t=1,mt=video"><embed src="http://mediaservices.myspace.com/services/media/embed.aspx/m=53961012,t=1,mt=video" allowfullscreen="true" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="360"></embed></object>Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-5618233757385612012009-05-09T14:28:00.006-04:002009-05-10T09:52:56.416-04:00Unstable CO2 Concentration as a Cause of Algae in Planted Aquariums<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3227/2969733338_0aaee228ac_o.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 512px; height: 433px;" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3227/2969733338_0aaee228ac_o.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>I just found the text quoted below in <a href="http://www.aquariumslife.com/fertilizers-and-co2/co2_planted_aquarium/">this article</a>.<br /><blockquote><div class="incqbox"><p><strong>Unstable CO2</strong><br />Both plants and algae adapt to CO2 in their environment. To do this, they produces what’s call the Rubisco. The Rubisco is an enzyme that is used for carbon fixation. In a low CO2 environment, plants and algae will produces more Rubisco so they can fix carbon from the KH (-HCO3). When there is plenty of CO2, plants and algae no longer need the Rubisco so they simply get rid of it.<br /><br />Problems show up when CO2 is unstable because algae are much faster to adapt to low CO2 than plants. So everytime your CO2 is changing, algae have a chance to outcompete the plants.</p></div></blockquote><p>When I saw the enzyme <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RuBisCO">RuBisCO</a> mentioned, I remembered the first time I heard that word, which was at a meeting of the Atlanta Area Aquarium Association, during member Brian Revennaugh's great presentation on planted aquariums. If you'd been in the room with me, you probably could have seen the light go on over my head. Aha!<br /><br />I've been a student of aquarium keeping, and especially planted aquariums, my whole life, and it is wonderful to be able to keep learning things about it.</p><p><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Addendum</span>: Brian R. adds some depth and precision in his post at the <a href="http://www.atlantaaquarium.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=485">AAAA Forum discussion </a>of this topic.<br /></p>Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-83341070466103588262009-04-17T12:49:00.005-04:002009-05-10T09:54:23.087-04:00Notes on Our Noto/Martynowski/Petz/Shock Family HistoryBack in the early 1970s, Grandma Lillian <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Martynowski</span>, my mother's mother, whose maiden name was Lillian <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Petz</span>, once told me that, when she was a little girl, her own mother's mother had told her that when she had been a little girl there were still Indians, Native Americans, that is, living on the outskirts of the city of Chicago.<br /><br />I was amazed to hear her say that, as I had somehow assumed that all of my immigrant forbears had arrived in the New World around the same time as my father's Sicilian family, in the early Twentieth Century. I'm guessing, now, that the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Petz</span> clan, which my grandmother mentioned was from the Alsace region of Germany, the native land of the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Alsatian</span>, or German Shepherd dogs, came to North America as part of the Hessian army of mercenary soldiers that helped England's King George in his futile attempt to retain control of the American colonies. I've not yet heard any word of how they came to be in the Chicago area.<br /><br />It is interesting that this is also how my wife's father's German ancestors, the Shocks, came to be on this side of the Atlantic. Carla Shock, my mother-in-law, has a copy of a genealogy that tells of three brothers travelling down the Ohio River on a raft, with one, my father-in-law's <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">forbear</span>, getting off around Evansville, Indiana.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-29661400845687433062009-01-06T14:55:00.006-05:002009-01-06T15:04:52.358-05:00125 mph...<span style="border-collapse: collapse; white-space: pre;">... in a friend's 1999 Porsche Carrera Cabriolet! </span>My personal land speed record for this millenium, or, actually, since hitting 145 mph with my brother back in 1971. And that in third gear. Sheesh.<br /><br /><div id=":1rp" class="ArwC7c ckChnd"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_hc_HCJR5ZHSMpw3XrEx-tWvs_zf1CSoSb67u_ZJ2OMlawA6WmFChFudgLx2LheT8_7c9LgtAydfVxrKCSJKDzn7PC739Eqecr8BV_vFEen_aW_bRpMVUqAfdkNp8Ur-JgbPg/s1600-h/Automotive+-+Porsche+911+Carrera+Cabriolet,+cropped.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 120px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_hc_HCJR5ZHSMpw3XrEx-tWvs_zf1CSoSb67u_ZJ2OMlawA6WmFChFudgLx2LheT8_7c9LgtAydfVxrKCSJKDzn7PC739Eqecr8BV_vFEen_aW_bRpMVUqAfdkNp8Ur-JgbPg/s320/Automotive+-+Porsche+911+Carrera+Cabriolet,+cropped.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288273247660217330" border="0" /></a>I've learned that "It never hurts to ask." I've gotten to drive a 1985 Porsche 911 that was set up for autocrossing with real stiff shocks, springs, and neoprene suspension bushings, a similarly cool old Toyota MR2, a BMW M Coupe (with the big three liter engine from the M3, and big rear tires under some mean fender flares), a recent, brand new BMW 330ci, a five year old BMW 740, a bright red 1999 BMW M3 convertible, and now, this. Life is sweet. <div><br /></div><div>No Corvette, Ferrari, or Lamborghini owner has given me the keys yet, but you never know. </div><div><br />Peas,<br /><div><img src="http://www.google.com/images?q=tbn:n2C5UZgg-dZGxM::www.kyagr.com/kyproud/images/peas.jpg" alt="http://www.kyagr.com/kyproud/peas.htm" title="http://www.kyagr.com/kyproud/peas.htm" align="middle" border="1" height="80" width="120" /></div></div><div>out.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Chris.<br /><br /></div><div><div>(P.S. The picture is actually a 2009 Porsche, but it was too easy to find this one at Porsche.com for me to look any further.) </div> <div><br /></div></div> </div>Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-10070968386484347062008-12-14T17:07:00.003-05:002008-12-14T17:11:25.699-05:00Intelligent design?After receiving frequent forwards from a buddy, I finally went and subscribed to the daily quotes at <a href="http://www.gratefulness.org/word/index.htm">gratefulness.org</a> for myself, and was happily surprised to find that today's quotation is by Mary Catherine Bateson, "Of any stopping place in life, it is good to ask whether it will be a good place from which to go on as well as a good place to remain."<br /><br />Bateson is the daughter of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_Mead" title="Margaret Mead">Margaret Mead</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregory_Bateson" title="Gregory Bateson">Gregory Bateson</a>, and G.B. was one of the mentors of Stewart Brand, founder and editor of the Whole Earth Catalog, the Last Edition of which turned out to be a life changing document for me. An interesting chain of events. Intelligent design? I don't like the weaponized way in which that phrase is being used in my culture, but...Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-74621969364978506892008-11-27T11:56:00.002-05:002008-11-27T11:57:10.940-05:00Video: The Auditioner<object height="225" width="400"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=656553&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1"><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=656553&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" height="225" width="400"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://vimeo.com/656553">The Auditioner</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/katevandevender">Kate</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-22640233774617888422008-11-27T11:23:00.003-05:002008-11-27T11:58:12.060-05:00Siskel & Ebert at the JugularRoger Ebert has posted <a href="http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2008/11/siskel_ebert_the_jugular.html">a beautiful essay</a> at his blog, Roger Ebert's Journal. He talks about his physical journey from fat man to cancer man, weaving in the thread of his relationship with Gene Siskel through those same years and changes. There are photos throughout, and two closing videos. Don't miss any of it.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-15416153124721814712008-11-13T21:31:00.002-05:002008-11-27T11:57:46.249-05:00Ya gotta love that 80s music!<object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/NqJAhQJdPeg&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/NqJAhQJdPeg&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="344" width="425"></embed></object><br />I sure do!Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-71802557184443077612008-10-17T11:58:00.001-04:002008-10-17T12:00:40.180-04:00A slice of life in the VloggerHoodSubtle? Who knows.<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10px; white-space: pre; "><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/szKbsbUMwkI&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/szKbsbUMwkI&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></span><br /></div><div>Stuff from all over. Combined artfully. Me like.</div>Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-86406766939094568352008-10-17T11:48:00.001-04:002008-10-17T11:50:58.045-04:00Rocketboom, "O RLY? Know Your Meme"<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10px; white-space: pre; "><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7kcWRu2XC_A&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7kcWRu2XC_A&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 10px; white-space: pre;">Whole lotta fun goin' on. YMMV, but it was worth three minutes and thirty-two seconds of <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">my</span> time. </span></div>Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-57627826854152965712008-10-17T11:30:00.003-04:002008-10-17T11:36:51.851-04:00Late 1960s Volkswagen BeetleNola and I owned a 1967 Volkswagen from 1974 through 1980, and loved it dearly, though the experience was a lot like driving an overgrown riding lawnmower. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUaoAmc2U2_nbf7Z-2G0vIaM7pIssGDECI_Ls0KibujM7LmoyisZ_RUbIM4KVN4GQBwfDy3weR0y1yv7p09WSOljbI2brWdChLqdLkfYRYwk_nRnw_NtpqzGMhEF3EyyEFtv6F/s1600-h/Automobile+-+CRN+-+Volkswagen+IMG_0847.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUaoAmc2U2_nbf7Z-2G0vIaM7pIssGDECI_Ls0KibujM7LmoyisZ_RUbIM4KVN4GQBwfDy3weR0y1yv7p09WSOljbI2brWdChLqdLkfYRYwk_nRnw_NtpqzGMhEF3EyyEFtv6F/s320/Automobile+-+CRN+-+Volkswagen+IMG_0847.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5258146722256655474" /></a><div><div><div>I saw the driver of this one waiting for his lady in the parking lot of Your Dekalb Farmers Market, and couldn't resist. </div></div></div>Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-63589323804765301362008-10-01T19:24:00.005-04:002009-08-08T12:06:00.770-04:00Roger Zelazny, "The Agnostic's Prayer"My son posted a status update on his facebook page, saying that he was "praying to the test gods," which reminded me of "The Agnostic's Prayer," written by Roger Zelazny, published in his novel, "Creatures of Light and Darkness," back in 1969.<br /><blockquote>"Insofar as I may be heard by anything, which may or may not care what I say, I ask, if it matters, that you be forgiven for anything you may have done or failed to do which requires forgiveness. Conversely, if not forgiveness but something else may be required to insure any possible benefit for which you may be eligible after the destruction of your body, I ask that this, whatever it may be, be granted or withheld, as the case may be, in such a manner as to insure your receiving said benefit. I ask this in my capacity as your elected intermediary between yourself and that which may not be yourself, but which may have an interest in the matter of your receiving as much as it is possible for you to receive of this thing, and which may in some way be influenced by this ceremony. Amen."<br /></blockquote>Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-6009541252904599932008-09-28T10:24:00.003-04:002008-09-28T10:31:12.097-04:00Movie Trailer: "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist"<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-btDYY-uLeY"></a><a style="left: 0px ! important; top: 15px ! important;" title="Click here to block this object with Adblock Plus" class="abp-objtab-0235669677917291 visible" href="http://www.youtube.com/v/-btDYY-uLeY&hl=en&fs=1"></a><a style="left: 0px ! important; top: 15px ! important;" title="Click here to block this object with Adblock Plus" class="abp-objtab-0235669677917291 visible" href="http://www.youtube.com/v/-btDYY-uLeY&hl=en&fs=1"></a><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-btDYY-uLeY&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-btDYY-uLeY&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />From Wikipedia: "After seeing his ex-sweetheart Tris (<a title="Alexis Dziena" href="http://www.blogger.com/wiki/Alexis_Dziena">Alexis Dziena</a>) with a new guy at his band's gig, high school student Nick O'Leary (<a title="Michael Cera" href="http://www.blogger.com/wiki/Michael_Cera">Michael Cera</a>), member of The Jerk Offs, is asked by college-bound Norah Silverberg (<a title="Kat Dennings" href="http://www.blogger.com/wiki/Kat_Dennings">Kat Dennings</a>) to be her boyfriend for five minutes to prove something to her friend Tris. Little does Norah know, Nick is Tris's ex-boyfriend, who Norah has developed a crush on even before seeing him. This is due to his mix CDs he had made for Tris after she broke up with him. Nick's friends then attempt to set them up, thinking it would help Nick get over Tris."<br /><br />This looks like <span style="font-style: italic;">way</span> too much fun to miss.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-22381097347168318872008-09-26T12:01:00.005-04:002008-09-26T12:07:39.838-04:00Today's Breakfast<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhC3nLw4-WOvCpmPaLNMpFLsRrG-GBYH_9TBEQX6dO-BH0S-GsA4heqVHkbZ7mL_92_8SfGO_yb63XNJbdlLtdVdi1nyXY7GXsf84GMi6021XFj75eaG3hfa7R0Ljm70o50Htr/s1600-h/Photo+-+CRN+-+Noto+Brand+Hickory+Smoked+Jalapeno+Pepper+Sauce.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhC3nLw4-WOvCpmPaLNMpFLsRrG-GBYH_9TBEQX6dO-BH0S-GsA4heqVHkbZ7mL_92_8SfGO_yb63XNJbdlLtdVdi1nyXY7GXsf84GMi6021XFj75eaG3hfa7R0Ljm70o50Htr/s320/Photo+-+CRN+-+Noto+Brand+Hickory+Smoked+Jalapeno+Pepper+Sauce.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5250362277493615730" border="0" /></a>Huevos Rancheros, Noto Brand Hickory Smoked Jalapeno Pepper Sauce, and a hot cup of coffee. The hot sauce is home made by my brother Frank, from his own organically grown, home smoked jalapenos.<br /><div id="photoImgDiv2889499701" style="width: 502px;" class="photoImgDiv"><br /></div>Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-90416499905247024632008-09-26T08:23:00.007-04:002008-09-26T08:29:20.456-04:00Aaron Sorkin Conjures a Meeting of Obama and Bartlet<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/21/opinion/21dowd-sorkin.html?em"><nyt_byline version="1.0" type=" "></nyt_byline></a><div class="timestamp"><a><span style="font-weight: bold;">By Maureen Dowd, New York Times, September 20, 2008</span><br /></a>"Now that he’s finally fired up on the soup-line economy, Barack Obama knows he can’t fade out again. He was eager to talk privately to a Democratic ex-president who could offer more fatherly wisdom — not to mention a surreptitious smoke — and less fraternal rivalry. I called the “West Wing” creator Aaron Sorkin (yes, truly) to get a read-out of the meeting. This is what he wrote"</div> <!--NYT_INLINE_IMAGE_POSITION1 -->Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-76744535907153008122008-09-22T21:53:00.005-04:002008-09-22T22:08:59.793-04:00Memory Lane: My 1970 Z/28 Camaro<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6YbYNohcuJ83bgfZHtyp602uxAntIKW16vyNBnjM8odF1weZFcqkznBqBjhKmhINJIuRJvnN2PRL9iB9udrRaYKG-XUF1QqJkMcBbAMpaUre9SKb80GRoAjN4UV1OGmeueYDb/s1600-h/1970+Chevrolet+Camaro+Z-28+-+Hugger+Orange.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6YbYNohcuJ83bgfZHtyp602uxAntIKW16vyNBnjM8odF1weZFcqkznBqBjhKmhINJIuRJvnN2PRL9iB9udrRaYKG-XUF1QqJkMcBbAMpaUre9SKb80GRoAjN4UV1OGmeueYDb/s320/1970+Chevrolet+Camaro+Z-28+-+Hugger+Orange.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5249029470770318514" border="0" /></a>Back in 1970, I owned a car that looked exactly like this, except for the license plate.<br /><br />Since I considered my driving skills to be exceptional, I did not always drive this amazing vehicle in what you'd call a responsible fashion.<br /><br />One afternoon my brother Frank and I drove to a brand new section of road, freshly paved, flat as a pancake and straight as an arrow for a mile or two, way out in the middle of nowhere west of then-developed suburban Fort Lauderdale, Florida. We turned off the radio, rolled up the windows, tightened down our seatbelts (no shoulder harnesses in those days, kids) and I put my foot down. Up through the gears we screamed, until the telephone poles were flicking by at an amazing rate, and I noticed that we were in fourth gear and the engine was wailing away, 500 rpm past its redline.<br /><br />Some years later, sitting with coffee after a family Christmas-season dinner at my parents' place, with the car safely gone to other parts, I was remembering the car fondly. My mother asked me how fast I had gone in it. I told her, "You really don't want to know." She insisted. I reiterated. She insisted <span style="font-style: italic;">again. </span>So, I told her, "One hundred and forty-five miles an hour."<br /><br />"I wish you hadn't told me." she said.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4096153.post-89764395589379129972008-09-22T19:08:00.005-04:002008-09-22T19:38:12.290-04:00My Favorite Atlanta Area BakeryHaving grown up in a household managed by my mother, who was, among other things, a German-American Baker-Woman Superhero, baked goods have a special place in my universe.<br /><br />With that in mind, I thought I'd turn on all you <a href="http://twitter.com/chrisnoto">Twitter</a>-less souls to my <a href="http://www.southernsweets.com/">Favorite Atlanta Area Bakery</a>, Southern Sweets, <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=186+Rio+Cir+Decatur,+GA+30030&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=32.059939,77.695313&ie=UTF8&ll=33.781876,-84.269943&spn=0.008204,0.018969&z=16&iwloc=addr">across from the Dekalb Farmers Market, off Laredo Drive</a>, in Decatur. It is a family business. Mom bakes, her twenty-something red-haired son fronts the retail operation, and Dad is the artist who has produced the delightful paintings that fill the walls.<br /><br />Go. Buy. Eat. Enjoy. Then write to me and tell me all about it.Chris Notohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12754800934574036237noreply@blogger.com0