Check out my guest post on my friend Ryan’s tech blog. Be sure to subscribe to Ryan Hoots Tech for reviews of all things PC and Linux!
Guest Post: Microsoft Office 2013 Review
Einstein would have had a panic attack.
I never really realized how quickly numbers add up when you’re dealing with exponents until today. I was trying out an idea in programming, but as soon as my estimations reached about 14 zeroes and my TI-83 graphing calculator threw an overflow error, I realized that I had a problem.
Perhaps I should explain…
Notes on Yesterday’s Apocalypse
As you all know, the world ended yesterday (December 21, 2012). I’m writing this from the other side of oblivion (God has great wi-fi). Considering some of the world’s servers are in apocalypse-proof shelters, we may all be dead, but we can still get our e-mail! It would be so inconvenient to enter into eternity without an inbox full of Canadian pharmacy offers and urban myth forwards, wouldn’t it?
Long Live Geekdom: A Trip Down (Random Access) Memory Lane
After my code decided to be evil and stop working, I decided to take a couple of days and install some additional operating systems on my work computer for testing our project. It turned into a trip down Geekdom Memory Lane. (Anyone remember Windows 3.1?)
It’s like hitting yourself with a hammer because it feels so good when you stop…
After spending hours trying to solve an especially difficult problem in programming, I decide to take a break and log onto a chatroom on a Christian radio station website, where I met a young man trying to solve an especially difficult math equation in his Algebra homework.
Half an hour later, 2/3 of the chatroom participants are trying to solve this equation, and we’re all getting confused.
The Paradox of Normalcy
“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” ~Psalm 139:14 NIV
As comedian and inspirational speaker Ken Davis often says, “I’m not right.” Well, shoot, I’ve known that about myself for almost half of my life. I’ve never fit the standard we all know as “normal,” and I’ve learned, especially over the past few years, to take joy in that fact.
Then I got to thinking: what IS normal? How would you define it?
Top 20 Music Videos of 2012
It’s October, which means it is time for my second annual video countdown! (Check out my First Annual here.) This has been an interesting year for music videos. “Performance” videos (where you only see the band performing the song) seem to be back in vogue. Thankfully for this countdown, a few artists stuck with the story format I tend to lean towards. A few performance videos made it to the countdown, simply for having excellent videography.
The Serious Side of Silly Names
I’m beginning to realize that these “species” I often write about – P. Newbieflamerous, P. Takeoveriticus, P. Noreadicus, P. Militaricus, etc. – exist in realms outside of the programming industry. As you probably know, I work with and in a wide variety of fields: writing, music, graphics (indirectly), and programming being four of them. I’ve met Graphicus Knowitallicus, Authorus Burnbridgerous (name inspired by this article), and the list goes on…
In case you’re thinking I’m being rather cruel with these pseudo-scientific names, I can assure you, I’m not. As a wise person once said, “Humor is a gentle way of acknowledging human frailty.” Not to mention, I’ve said and done things in the past that could have classified me as many of the above. I’ve found the first step in fixing these character glitches is in being able to laugh at them. I’m quite guilty of taking myself too seriously, so I can tell you first hand, not being able to laugh at one’s own stupidity is a surefire way to stay stuck in said stupidity.
Seasons
This post title wound up being a double entendre.
First, after a few false starts, I’m finally moving forward on not just one, but TWO albums! The track lists have been nailed down, the recording sessions scheduled, and the release dates planned (at least in my li’l head).
One is my next piano album, Seasons of Light. I’m really excited for this one for two reasons: it is my public debut, as I’ve figured out distribution and whatnot; and I get to record on a baby grand (courtesy my musical mentor, LaRee!)
Mommy Confidential
When Ethan and I welcomed our bundle of joy into the world about twenty years ago, we had no idea what we were getting into. Someone failed to give us the fine print of the “owner’s manual” so our parenting road became littered with various successes and failures from our trial and error approach. ~Anne McDonald, Mommy Confidential
Introducing Mommy Confidential, written by my own mother, Anne McDonald. This is the story of my childhood, written by the mother of one evil genius, for other mothers of evil geniuses.
