Laurabelle's Blog

I was called for jury duty today. I don't know if other counties do this, but in Alameda, you "report" online to see whether you have to go in physically (after 5pm the previous day for 8:30am call, after 11am for a 1pm call). Twice in the past I haven't needed to go in; today [...]

Satire really shouldn't be this close to the truth. Satire may already be dead, but reality is flogging for all it's worth.

The final outcome of Germany's elections last Sunday is going to be rather interesting. I'll attempt a brief explanation of the German national political process, since I believe I know more about it than the average American, and the mainstream American media doesn't seem to do a good job explaining it. I might get a [...]

Every time I start feeling sorry for myself, something happens to remind me that I have nothing to complain about. Katrina was a good example, though too big to comprehend. It's like trying to hold the concept of a million in my mind. I can't imagine New Orleans being wiped out. Often the little stories [...]

I got an an email from American Airlines yesterday, asking me to donate my frequent-flyer miles to help victims of Hurricane Katrina. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, relocation efforts are ongoing and recovery is moving forward. But many of the people evacuated from their neighborhoods have urgent travel needs—to relocate, connect with family, and [...]

I am donating this photo (from my Flapjack Lakes hike) to Burningbird's Critters for Critters auction. I still have the 1600x1200 original JPG image, so it should print out nice and pretty. Shelley is aiming for 100 bloggers to participate. I reckon I'm about #7. Update: Shelley has half-decided not to pursue the auction because [...]

A couple of years ago my good friend Maggie half-suggested that we let our friendship go, because she was unhappy with how our conversations were going. I had a bad habit of jumping into all the things that I'd been doing, without letting her get a word in edgewise about herself. She felt that she [...]

It turns out, not surprisingly, that the areas Bush toured in Biloxi were cleaned up only for his visit and then abandoned. Also unsurprisingly, the only reporting on this issue comes from German TV network ZDF. The American media is apparently taken in by the deception. Why is this a problem? Let me count the [...]

I'd be the first to tell you that college rankings are not worth much more than the paper they're printed on. (How can anyone quantify the quality of education that I will receive at a given institution, which is what I really care about?) I'm especially critical of mainstream rankings, U.S. News & World Report [...]

My last post (about being a geek) made me think about how attractive female geeks are to many male geeks. Jeff, for example, appreciates my intellect and the fact that I can not only understand what he's talking about but far out-geek him in some areas (such as information science and web development). I don't [...]