Places to Live

In trying to decide where to live, it started to seem like I was focusing on negatives of great places to attempt to disqualify them.  Obviously, every place has enough negatives to disqualify it, which meant that mediocre places were being considered.  In an attempt at a different tactic, I decided to rank the 50 states and DC from least to most desirable.  This is a rough first pass that attempts to include social, political, and geographic considerations, but was an interesting exercise all the same.

Oklahoma
Kansas
Mississippi
Delaware
Missouri
Louisiana
Arkansas
Georgia
Nebraska
Alabama
Indiana
South Carolina
North Carolina
Iowa
North Dakota
South Dakota
New Jersey
Pennsylvania
Illinois
Arizona
Ohio
Kentucky
Tennessee
Montana
Idaho
Wyoming
Michigan
Wisconsin
Minnesota
Alaska
Florida
Texas
Virginia
Maryland
Rode Island
Connecticut
Utah
Colorado
West Virginia
Hawaii
Nevada

--Top 10--
DC
New Hampshire
Maine
Vermont
New Mexico
Washington
Massachusetts
New York
Oregon
California

Some of these are obviously ties, and some of them are semi-random, thus, if you took any 10 states, their position would probably move within that range.  For example, is Vermont actually better than Maine and New Hampshire?  Does Austin or the Keys actually buoy Texas or Florida above Alaska?  Towards the bottom, one gets into the states that would never be considered, so does it really matter?  Is Oklahoma really worse than Missouri?  Kansas is unfairly low, as Lawrence seems pretty reasonable, but most states have a cool town, so how high should Lawrence lift Kansas?  Up to Nebraska?  Probably, but  does Lawrence make it better than Georgia?  At least Atlanta would be easy to fly out of, which would be better than the presumed isolation of Lawrence.  In the end though, anything below about 20 is probably not worth considering.  That said, maybe a great job (a total wild card in this ranking) could boost any state into the top spot.

The real surprise:  West Virginia at 13!

Stop SOPA and PIPA

Congress  is once again selling out to corporations, and attempting to sell your civil liberties to the entertainment industry.  The ramifications of the American government doing this would be to cripple free speech internationally.  The bills, known as SOPA and PIPA, are opposed by wide swath of Americans that are small business owners, nerds, university professors, TEA Party activists, the Cato Institute, the ACLU, EFF, and many more organizations and individuals.

If you are unsure what this legislation is, or means for you, Randall Monroe has four good links posted on xkcd. If you want an easy way to contact your congressional delegation, the EFF has a super easy form letter you can send here.

Exercise Ball Antics

I'm not sure how many people check out the comments.  Sarah posted the link to this Nike ad in comment on "Seals Can Do That."  Just in case you missed it, the exercise ball antics (which are way out of my league) are worth a watch. (Also here.)

Minutiae

More pictures have been posted to my Picasa site, and the new Faux Social page is nearly set (I'm still debating a few things, we'll call it a beta version).  Preview it if you are interested, and comment on the new format if you like or dislike it.  Check it out at fauxsocial.blogspot.com.

Some folks have apparently been wondering what has been happening in my life, and, well, I think a recent xkcd captures what I go through when I try to work with most people.  This, is a stick-figure drawn glimpse of my life:  http://www.xkcd.com/974/.  In my defense, I usually can access my "fuck it, and get it done" response when it counts, but I hate going back through shoddy work, so I take the time to try to make the work being done at present good enough that I will not want to hurl feces at myself in a year or two.

Upcoming posts will probably include random topics such as balancing on exercise balls, the merits of high-vis clothing, and identifying hazards, but I may grow tired of those topics before I finish writing anything of consequence.

RWC + Classic Autos

--Note: This was written on 29 October 2011, thus "today" refers to that date, not the date of posting.--

Over the six weeks of the Rugby WorldCup I asked people what would happen if New Zealand did not win. Thefirst response was economic recession and an increase in familyviolence. Each additional person I asked gave the same response. Iassumed it was just a national joke, then I saw the sign. The otherday, I ran past a billboard sponsored by the New Zealand Policeurging Kiwis to “blow the whistle” on family violence. Apparently, when the All Blacks loose, there really is a surge infamily violence! Maybe that is true of all sports, but Rugby (andall other sports) are not worth it! It blows my mind, but thenagain, maybe that is why all the girls were dolled up for the finals,“you can hit me, or...”

Today, under the billboard was a yellow1978 Mini Clubman LE for sale (the billboard is in a field on Highway1 where people sell vehicles). I like the Volkswagen Kombi vans, andthe 70's era body style is decidedly the best looking. Perhaps theonly vehicle better looking than those vans is the classic Mini(maybe classic vehicle in my price range that is better looking...). The car is tiny, yellow and black (like my 1976 Schwinn Le Tour), andin good shape. I am feeling committed to living car free as long asI do not need one,but cars like that definitely make it hard for me to stick it out.

Rugby World Cup

I am at home writing.  While I do this, 4 of 5 residents of Taupo (Taupons?) are down the street for the Rugby World Cup (notably being played in Auckland, not down the street).  It is a big deal here.  Rugby may seem like just football with no forward passes, but it is like hockey in Canada - basically more popular than heroine in a methadone clinic.  I can hear every single play from the crowd's reaction.

I walked around a bit to check it out, and see if I could spot someone I knew to be social for a bit.  I was unsuccessful at running into someone, and in finding something to keep me out on the town.  Most people are enjoying the festivities in groups where the women have worn trendy, revealing outfits fitting of clubbing to entice their blokes, and their men have worn All Blacks jerseys and jeans, the average Tuesday attire.