fires

Blurbomat points to the review of MacOS 10.5, “Leopard” on Ars Technica. Anil Dash has no sense of humor about one icon.

I wish Windows had included Mac networking by default years ago. Sadly, no. Maybe something based on:

I upgraded this blog to WordPress 2.3.1. Bugfixes and an easy transition from 2.3. I’m so glad I chose WP so long ago, and not MovableType. WP is the open source winner. Speaking of WP, they moved Gravatar to their infrastructure which has gone well, the blog High Scalability pointed out Making Gravatar Fast Again. Cool stuff, and will help them avoid “crashing hard” moments. The Gravatar article pointed to Varnish, a tool I had not looked at but which might be appropriate for some projects I’m part of.

Thomas Barnett points out that Bush said he’s relevant. If you have to declare you’re relevant, you’re not. I just wish he wasn’t commander-in-chief. Can we fast forward to the next administration? This one is making me tired.

Philip Greenspun has some new original thoughts on non-profit donations. I wish he did more writing like this. In 2003 I said of him: If anyone can be considered a model for my own experimentation and thoughts on how to put together a personal site, it’s Greenspun. Greenspun has been accused of being an egoiste and of being insensitive in his use of metaphors, and more. Bottom line: he thinks deeply, and I admire him. Still true.

I dug the drawings, I laughed. How can I feel like a flying squirrel? The answer: Sleep Sack!

Heaven and Here is still around. And they are blogging about the best television show ever, The Wire. It’s coming again in January. Yes, I said EVER.

Binary Wolf points to InciWeb and an amazing map of the Witch Fire.

Greg’s Cool Thing points out a post on a Windows utility to check and see what processes are using a DLL. Potentially very useful.

Robot writing out Bible nonstop – this sounds a lot like the The Nine Billion Names of God for some reason. Are you there God? it’s Me, R2-D2.

Japan Probe points out the world’s most dangerous hiking trail. Yikes!

Lines and Colors points to the work of Allan R Banks, Classical painter. http://allanbanks.com/ is a slow site, but worth the load times. I’ve also been meaning to point to this post on the Pre-Raphaelites, also from LaC. Also pointed to there is this very in-depth study of one painting: Millais’ Ophelia.

Slashfilm says “See Blade Runner: The Final Cut on The Big Screen.” I’ve decided to do it. Thursday night at The Landmark. Hit me on email ((( joe at artlung.com ))) if you want in.

Some of you have asked more about my Mom—really, the latest info I have is pretty much contained in this post over here. And for more background on my Mom, check out the magazine article.

Have a great week and be well. I hope all of you affected by the fires are getting back to normal.

I woke up with my throat dry and with an acrid feel in my nose. I can also feel, with a deep breath, some pain on inhalation. This is not good. It’ll do me good to get out and out of this air. I’m going to encourage Leah and our houseguests to get away from it too for at least a while today.

Sunday night we were calling the Sheriff’s Department and City and School District to find out about possible school closures and didn’t get any information till late at night. But there were no school closings for Moorpark.

Today, however, there is no school. Here’s the advisory from the Moorpark Unified School District:

BASED ON THE CONTINUING DEVELOPMENTS OF THE PIRU FIRE LINE AND HIGH WIND FORECAST, ALL MOORPARK UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT SCHOOLS WILL BE CLOSED FOR CLASSES ON TUESDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2007.

Please check the website for notification about the following day. By Tuesday afternoon, a decision will be made regarding the status of school on Wednesday.

And this is from the Ventura County Air Pollution Control District:

Due to the smoke from many of the wildfires in and around Ventura County, it is possible that almost all areas of Ventura County will encounter smoke at some time. Air Quality in areas affected by the smoke are considered to be unhealthful. If you smell smoke, be cautious and use common sense to protect your family’s health. Everyone, especially people with heart or lung disease (including asthma), older adults and children should limit time spent outdoors, and limit prolonged or heavy exertion. If you have symptoms of lung or heart disease that may be related to excess smoke exposure, including repeated coughing, shortness of breathe or difficulty breathing, wheezing, chest tightness or pain, palpitations, nausea or unusual fatique or lightheadedness, contact your health care provider. This advisory will be extended as conditions warrant. If you have questions contact Ventura County Air Pollution District, Kent Field or Mallory Ham at 805 662-6960 or 645-1400.
For more information see also:

Air Quality Forecast

Ventura County Fire Department, LAFD News & Information, Ventura County Sheriff Department, InciWeb, Satellite 1, Satellite 2

The Air Quality forecast is continuing to be “101-150 Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups.” That is right at the top end of the scale in terms of airborne particulates.

I hate unhealthy air.