Occasionalities

Today's Quote 07/04/08

2008-07-05T06:16:56Z

"I will not be punched, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed, or numbered!" -- Patrick McGoohan as "The Prisoner"

June 2008 Books

2008-07-05T06:15:06Z

Astropolis: Earth Ascendant by Sean Williams - Another solid future space tale by Williams. Let's hope he's learned how to write a proper ending by now.
Blood Noir by Laurell K. Hamilton - The Anita Blake book before this showed signs of diminished sex and more attention to story. This one does show a bit more sign of advancing the various plots, but not yet enough. Can Hamilton get her mojo back?
Grantville Gazette IV by Eric Flint - The 1632 Universe is just a lot of fun to read vignette stories about, and I bet it fun to write them too. Just good, fun, enjoyable storytelling all round.
Night Child by Jes Battis - Another new author cranking our urban fantasy with a dash of romance. Not great, not bad, let's see if it develops.
One For The Money by Janet Evanovich - The first book on the Stephanie Plum series. Not SF or Fantasy, just a series of novels about the adventures of a former lingerie buyer turned bounty hunter, and her somewhat befuddling attempts to learn the business. Cute enough to warrant looking at the second book. Recommended by a friend who's slightly cuter than the series heroine.
Spectre: a Zoe Martinique investigation by Phaedra Wilson - Urban fantasy / horror and second in a series. Wilson's hitting her stride with this, it's both a big improvement over the first book and a real attention getter. I look forward to more of these.
Daemons Are Forever by Simon R. Green - The sequel to "The Man With The Golden Torc". Green writes reliably frothy fantasy, and this is no exception. Sort of like popcorn for the mind.
Valor's Trial by Tanya Huff - Latest in Huff's Confederation series. Solid SF adventure, even if her heroine has a slightly less than believable tendency to be there for every major event in the galaxy.
Two For The Dough by Janet Evanovich - Second in the Stephanie Plum series. This one provides a good number of laugh out loud moments. I'll go for the next, too.
Stealing Light by Gary Gibson - Someone stop Gibson before he writes again! This book may have been the worst waste of time I've indulged in in ages. Not because it was bad, no, it was reasonably well written, set up some intrigueing premises, and kept the story moving along. The problem was the ending, or lack thereof. After the end, nothing was changed, nothing had been altered, and absolutely NOTHING that any of the characters did within the story has any meaning whatsoever. Just WHAT was the point?
Holy Smoke by Katie MacAlister - Latest in the Aisling Grey, Guardian series. If Simon Green writes popcorn, then MacAlister's stuff is best thought of as cotton candy. Fluffy, attractive, light and frothy, and ultimately without any real substance.
Identity Theft and Other Stories by Robert J. Sawyer - Solid but not particularly inspired short story collection from a solid and reliably competent SF author.

Today's Quote 07/01/08

2008-07-01T23:45:15Z

"Anyone who can, as Popular Science's Theodore Gray apparently did, fabricate a custom bullet-shaped router bit and use it to create a high-heat-resistant graphite mold suitable for casting ammo out of 99.9 percent pure silver has attained a level of near superhuman geekery that the rest of us can only mutely admire." -- Cecil Adams, "The Straight Dope", 25 Jan 2008

Today's Quote 06/30/08

2008-07-01T03:56:59Z

Oddly appropriate, after my post on duty and sacrifice the other day. I ran across this today.

From an article on the American Thinker website, titled McCain, My Man, 30 June 2008, by Kyle-Anne Shiver.

"Even though the [North Vietnamese] bombing was President Nixon's decision, John McCain's own father, Admiral Jack McCain, CINCPAC, was the man who actually issued the orders that resumed America's bombing of the city in which his son was held captive. Such a burden for a father to bear, I simply cannot imagine."

(Emphasis in original.)

For those of you that do not understand this, or are horrified by the very thought, please read this quote from John McCain himself, discussing the impact of the bombing on the American prisoners in North Vietnam.

"We knew at the time that unless something very forceful was done that we were never going to get out of there. We were fully aware that the only way we were ever going to get out was for our government to turn the screws on Vietnam. So we were very happy. We were cheering and hollering."
-- (John McCain, an American Odyssey; p. 106)

I think this pretty well says all that needs to be said.

Today's Quote 06/26/08

2008-06-27T02:44:37Z

"The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie -- deliberate, contrived and dishonest, but the myth, persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic. Belief in myths allows the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought." -- John F. Kennedy

And, myths can be much more pervasive and harder to disprove than the lie.

Ultimate NERF War

2008-06-23T22:41:40Z

What does *your* office do when that sound of that idiot at the next desk, clicking his pen over and over again, finally passes the point of ruptured sanity? Don't get mad, don't even get even - get NERF!

http://view.break.com/521743 - Watch more free videos

Today's Quote 06/21/08

2008-06-22T07:18:28Z

"Christians can be divided into two kinds, the kind who think you should get Jesus and the kind who think Jesus is going to get you." -- P.J. O'Rourke

I do so love P.J. O'Rourke. :)

Whither Sacrifice?

2008-06-21T19:15:33Z

A friend (the always delightful and energetic netmouse) announced on her LJ she is trying to organize a movie trip out to see Roman Holiday at the Michigan on Tuesday. Now, Roman Holiday happens to be one of my all time favorites, a wonderfully bitter-sweet romance that truly sticks in the memory. But it seems to me that, in a strange way, it's becoming dated. Dated in a way that simply old clothes, old cars, and old settings don't explain. It seems to me that it's becoming *culturally* dated.

What do I mean by that? In classic movies of the mid-twentieth century, there was an occasionally recurring theme. The theme was "sacrifice of personal happiness to duty". This is very clear in Roman Holiday, and in other movies of the era like Casablanca. The hero (or heroine) must give us happiness (usually true love) in favor of the obligations they've assumed, or inherited. The movie generally ends with this "noble sacrifice".

However, it occurred to me that I don't see such a concept in the movies much any more. Sure, there are still noble sacrifices, but they are generally sacrificing one's life for others (and usually only by a secondary character), or if the main character does sacrifice something important to them, the movie usually finds some way to either give it back to them.

So, two questions to all of you. Do you see this too? Do you think movies have changed in this way - or am I totally off base? And, if you agree that this has been a change, why do you suppose it has happened? Do we look at the concept of "duty" so differently from our grandparents that it just doesn't resonate to us anymore? Do we consider it somehow passe? I have a suspicion myself that we, as a culture, simply don't *respect* a personal sacrifice for duty the way we once did, and that we simply have the newer meme that you *can* have it all, that you can always find a way to achieve personal happiness while doing all of the things you feel you need to do.

EDIT: Corrected bad markup in HTML.

Today's Quote 06/13/08

2008-06-16T03:08:06Z

"The reformer is always right about what is wrong. He is generally wrong about what is right." - G.K. Chesterton, ILN 10-28-22

It is easy to find the things you believe passionately are thoroughly wrong. It is much more difficult to accept those things that are not completely right, but have through experience proved to be the most acceptable compromise. In an imperfect world, to attempt perfection only results in frustration and destruction.

Today's Quote 06/08/08

2008-06-09T02:08:38Z

"Never, never, never believe any war will be smooth and easy, or that anyone who embarks on the strange voyage can measure the tides and hurricanes he will encounter. The statesman who yields to war fever must realize that once the signal is given, he is no longer the master of policy but the slave of unforeseeable and uncontrollable events." -- Sir Winston Churchill

Worth being reminded of, and worth remembering, on BOTH ends of the political spectrum.

Reacting to Sheep!

2008-06-08T08:09:33Z

No - not THAT! This is a cute little method of measuring your reaction times. Only takes a minute or two. I tried it, and I seem to have a reaction time of somewhere between 0.25 and 0.30 seconds. The site ranks me as a medium reaction time, but I have trouble imagining how someone else could be *much* faster. Go ahead and give it a shot, then let me know what kind of score you got.

Tranq the Sheep

Go light your ear!

2008-06-07T06:49:52Z

Wherein Cecil Adams and The Straight Dope (Official slogan: FIGHTING IGNORANCE SINCE 1973 (IT'S TAKING LONGER THAN WE THOUGHT)) take on one of the most burning questions of our age - do ear candles really do anything?

How do "ear candles" work?

The short answer? They work by separating you from your hard earned money. But not from your equally hard earned wax.

Today's Quote 06/06/08

2008-06-07T05:21:44Z

"Sometimes it's not the light in a person that you fall in love with, but the dark. Sometimes it's not the optimist you need, but another pessimist to walk beside you and know, absolutely know, that the sound in the dark is a monster, and it really is as bad as you think." -- from the Laurell K. Hamilton novel Blood Noir

May 2008 Books

2008-06-02T03:43:57Z

Pretty good month for books this last month, and some interesting ones.

Revelation (Star Wars: Legacy of the Force, Book 8) by Karen Traviss - One of the great things about this particular Star Wars series is that it continues the story set out in Episodes IV, V, and VI well into the future. Something like 40 years have passed since the end of the movies, and these books chronicle all of it. Major characters are introduced, other die, and the story actually *changes*! If you can deal with media tie-ins, then I recommend this series.
Viewpoints Critical by L.E. Modesitt, Jr. - Short story collection by Modesitt, including one "Recluce" story. Not bad, but really only for confirmed Modesitt fans.
Alex Unlimited: True Chemistry by Dan Jolley - The series continues to perk along at the typical YA level. Some revelations, some forward momentum, and our heroine seems to be growing up a bit. Good for what it is.
The Sharing Knife: Passage by Lois McMaster Bujold - Third book in this fantasy series, Bujold continues her tradition of strong and memorable characters in interesting settings. Recommended.
Free Fall by Laura Anne Gilman - Fifth book in the Retrievers series, an urban fantasy. Prior to this series Gilman had done only short stories, media tie-in novels, and children's book. And the lack of experience showed a bit. But in this book she's really hitting her stride as a story plotter and author, and despite the somewhat slow start in the earlier books, I can really recommend this now.
Cruel Zinc Melodies by Glen Cook - The latest is Cook's seemingly unending "Garrett, P.I." fantasy series. And who wants it to end? Lightweight, sometimes silly, and occasinally poignant, it's just lots of fun.
A Kiss Before The Apocalypse by Thomas E. Sniegoski - Sniegoski has been around a while, and is a common colaborator with Christopher Golden, the noted horror author. This is his (I believe) third solo novel, and he does a workmanlike job. Urban fantasy, with the main character being an angel who self-exiled himself from Heaven, and is doing his best to suppress his angelic nature. Interesting and original.
Armed & Magical by Lisa Shearin - Second in the "Raine Benares" series, and second published book by Shearin. Fantasy adventure, with a good dollop of politics and romance. Not bad.
The Tau Ceti Agenda by Travis S. Taylor - Taylor often collaborates with John Ringo, and from the hero of the Tau Ceti series (of which this is the second book) you can see why. The indomitable, unstoppable U.S. Marine conquers the universe! Fairly fun, but you have to have a low suspension of disbelief rating.
Blindsight by Peter Watts - I'm told this novel was nominated for a Hugo last year. I can't imagine why. It's disjointed, non-engaging, and hard to read. There are bits of an interest story here, but it never quite gels.
Star Wars: Legacy of the Force: Invincible by Troy Denning - Concluding novel in this particular story arc in the future Star Wars series. Adventure, doubt, death, politics, surprises, tragedy, and old friends back again. How can you go wrong?
The Darkest Kiss by Keri Arthur - Latest book in the "Riley Jensen, Guardian" series. It's fantasy, romance, and thriller. Or at least is says it is, but it doesn't quite ever make it. Not recommended.
Star Trek: The Next Generation - Forgiveness by David Brin - Graphic novel written by Brin for the Wildstorm run of Star Trek comics. Past meets present and tells the story of the (aborted) invention of the transporter on Earth. Not a bad story, but not worth the money - there's just not enough there.
The Facts in the Case of the Departure of Miss Finch by Neil Gaiman - Another graphic novel, this one a contemporary dark fantasy (does he write any other kind?) by Gaiman. More of a mood piece than a real story, and strangely reminiscent of the work he did with Alice Cooper, "The Last Tempation". Only must shorter, and without a real point. Amazingly for a Gaiman story, I really can't recommend it.

Endings

2008-06-01T23:46:26Z

Let's talk about endings for a bit, shall we? The kind that happen not with a bang, but with a whimper. The type that don't expire at once, but wear away over the course of a thousand little individual deaths. When does the end actually happen? Do we notice it at all, or do we just keep going through the same motions we always have through sheer inertia and habit?

To put it in context, let's say there is something that you've known for a long time. You've both been friends, you've both been close, you both have history. But you have noticed more and more that you just aren't going out of your way to see that friend very often. That you aren't looking forward to spending time the way that you once did. You both don't seem to talk to each other like you once did. And one day, as you're sitting there with your thoughts drifting, you realize that you don't have any real *interest* in seeing the other person anymore.

What do you do? How do you react? Do you continue to go through the motions? Do you actually still call and make plans with them? Do you instead react only when they initiate something, but continue to go along with their plans? Do you just stop taking their calls, start ignoring their message, leaving them to wonder what happened? Do you sit them down for "that talk"? If so, what do you say? "Sorry, you bore me?" Not hardly. "I feel like we've grown apart..." Hey, you weren't *married*! What DO you say? What do you DO?

So I ask that of all of you. I'm not really looking for suggestions, there's not a situation I'm looking to handle right this moment. But I've had this happen in my life, and I've NEVER been happy with the way I've handled it. What do YOU do? What do you suggest? I'd like to know. I hope you'll comment.

Today's Quote 05/31/08

2008-06-01T07:21:13Z

"The more corrupt the state, the more numerous the laws." -- Tacitus

I have generally agreed with Tacitus, except that I'm not sure he didn't get the order wrong. I have a strong suspicion that as the number of laws grows, the opportunities for, and incidences of, corruption grow. Every law creates a new need for someone to get around it...

Anagram Amusement

2008-05-28T23:10:14Z

I'm very amused not only by the anagrams produced from variation of my name, but of their somewhat strange and predictive consistancy...

Steve Gutterman to Meet gravest nut.
Steven Gutterman to Avengement trust.
Steve Howard Gutterman to Warm roughest vendetta.
Steven Howard Gutterman to Now venerated smart thug.

Go. Try it. You will be amused.

http://www.sternestmeanings.com/

Ganked from sheryl67

Bacon! It's BACON!!

2008-05-26T04:09:19Z

And I thought the cell phone taser was bad...

Bacon Scented Bacon Print Tuxedo

And while you're there, check out the Capt'n Danger Stunt Monkey Baby Chute. A parachute and harness chair for your baby. "...toss the baby up in the air and he'll gently float back into your waiting arms." Unless, of course, you commit the classic blunder of twisting the lines of the parachute when you toss it into the air. (As the website says, "Baby go boom!") Am I the only one thinking "Don't cross the streams!" C'mon folks, I expect to see some really *bad* puns in the comments. Don't disappoint me.

Today's Quote 05/21/08

2008-05-22T01:47:55Z

"As I grow older, I pay less attention to what people say. I just watch what they do." -- Andrew Carnegie

It took me a long time to realize the essential truth of that statement; I always assumed that each person should know themselves better than anyone else, so if their description of their own motives didn't seem to match their actions, it must have been some exceptional situation that defied the normal rules. But 30 years or so of "exeptional situations" caused me to reassess. It seems instead that people either don't know themselves, or they do but don't wish other people to know them. So now I follow Mr. Carnegie's advice, for behavior will tell what really motivates a person.

Today's Quote 05/11/08

2008-05-11T23:39:06Z

"It is never too late to be what you might have been." -- George Eliot

OSBP - A late word

2008-05-04T23:03:00Z

I did not post anything during the kerfluffle over the Open Source Boob Project, as I didn't feel I had anything either fresh or particularly interesting to say that wasn't already being well-covered by others. Also, I found myself wishing the whole hubbub would die out quickly, and didn't want to fan the flames at all. However, I did keep thinking about the entire issue, and eventually an item floated to the top which I think is worth of commenting on, if only tangentially connected to the OSBP.

(For those of you that have not heard the story of the OSBP, please refer to this set of posts for primary information. Go ahead and look, I'll wait.)

Having been peripherally aware of the creation of the OSBP, I was generally in sympathy with the idea. Those who know me are well aware that my generally philosophy is that of "do whatever you want, as long as you don't hurt other people". This certainly seemed to fall into that category, a bit of harmless fun by people that were voluntarily participating.

When the fit hit the shan, and the firestorm of commentary erupted, I was quite non-plussed. I really didn't expect such as reaction. So I went and read some of the commentary and complaints, trying to get a feel for what the furor was about.

In most cases, the people protesting the whole thing did it from a perspective of "there are some types of things other people just shouldn't be doing". Well sorry about that, but as far as I'm concerned, nobody has the right to tell anyone else what they should or shouldn't be doing. (The earlier-mentioned caveat of "as long as you don't hurt other people" aside.) However, there was one particular commentary that stuck with me, and forced me to think about it again and again.

These particular comments were about the concept of expectations and peer pressure, and came generally from sources that were self-identified as feminists. Boiled down, they generally said that some women might not be sure about joining in with the OSBP, but would feel peer pressure within their social groups to do so, and that would put them in a compromised position where they may feel unsafe or violated. And the second level of the concern was that even among women that made a unpressured choice to wear the OSBP buttons, if they said "yes" to some people, they would then feel socially pressured (so as to avoid impoliteness) to say "yes" to everyone that asked.

I nodded my head to these arguments, immediately seeing how that could (and would) happen to some people. It was perfectly in accord with human nature, many women would undoubtedly feel just those things, and some of those would probably be placed in uncomfortable situations as a result. So it made sense that someone should be critical of the OSBP. That seemed a reasonable conclusion, but something about it just didn't sit right with me. In fact, it kept nagging at me until I looked at it enough to spot what was bothering me about it.

What I eventually realized bothered me was a subtle and unconscious assumption in the argument. In the context of the criticism, "peer pressure" was taken to be something unusual, and difficult to manage, exerting great control over a person's actions. However, in the real world, we are both the victims and users of peer pressure every day. Decisions ranging from the mundane of what clothes we wear, or whether a person uses cosmetics, or whether to use blue language, to major decisions like where we'll live, how we'll raise our children, and how we treat others all are influenced by the all-pervasive action of peer pressure. We are all used to it, we all deal with it in our own ways, and every functional person should be expected to live with it.

And therein is the trap. We all understand peer pressure because we all live with it. We sympathize when someone is swayed by it, because we understand exactly how that happens. And yet, AND YET, it is a normal part of everyday life. So in a situation like the OSBP, saying that some people ought not be doing something because some other people might be swayed into a decision they don't feel comfortable making is essentially saying that some people aren't fully responsible for their own behavior. That there is a class of people that don't have the judgement or moral strength of others, and they need to be protected from the same pressures that all the rest of us operate under. And in this case, the odd thing is that it seemed to be feminists making that assumption about other women. And that was the inherent contradiction in the peer pressure argument that finally caused it to collapse under it's own weight for me. If we took this argument to its logical extreme, and said that no one could do anything that might result in a social pressure for someone else to make a decision that was poor for them, then we might as well say that no one can do anything at all.

And that way lies madness.

(Note: corrected a couple of typos that did not affect content on 5/4/08)

Today's Quote 05/04/08

2008-05-04T22:10:37Z

"Man cannot remake himself without suffering, for he is both the marble and the sculptor." -- Alexis Carrel

April 2008 Books

2008-05-04T22:05:35Z

Another fairly light month this month, what with house issues and Penguicon. Only nine books read in all. But at least they're all new this month, with the exception of the one short story collection.

Moon Flowerby James Hogan - I absolutely adored Hogan when he wrote the "Giants" novels. I thought he had really matured as a writer when he started to do thriller with a science fiction edge like "The Mirror Maze" and "Endgame Enigma". But lately, his books have become cotton candy, light, fluffy, with little content, and forgotten just moment after consuming them. It is a shame. They're still fun quick reads, but Hogan used to do so much better.
Embrace The Night by Karen Chance - Vampires, magic, mobsters, fairy, romance and a young woman on the run and trying to take charge. Third novel in the series, and I'm enjoying it. I hope the character development improves though, it's fairly pedestrian so far.
Rolling Thunder by John Varley - Good clean old-fashioned fun, the third book in the Red series, after Red Thunder and Red Lightning. (He's killed the series name with this title, obviously.) I've said it before - if you like the Heinlein juveniles, then you'll love this series. It has all the fun of the Heinleins, with better character development and more of a "real life" feel. Highly recommended.
Small Favor by Jim Butcher - Latest in the "Harry Dresden - Wizard" series. Butcher just gets better and better. If you've read them, I don't need to tell you anything; if you haven't read them, you need to. Now.
Magic Burns by Ilona Andrews - Fairly unambitious urban fantasy series with a main female haracter in the Laurell Hamilton or Kim Harrison mold. Competent, but not noteworty.
Galaxy Blues by Allen Steele - The latest in his "Coyote" series. I haven't read the earlier books in the series, and am not sure I will, but this one works just fine as a stand-alone. SF adventure and politics. Fun if you like that type of thing.
The Stars Down Under by by Sandra McDonald - Second book in the series, after "The Outback Stars". SF series with an old, vanished alien race that left functional artifacts behind. The link between humans and aliens is based on Australian Aboriginals lore, and doesn't always blend well with the overall feel of the rest of the book. A strange blend of mysticism and science.
The Best From Galazy, Volume IV edited by Jim Baen - For the last 20 years or so, until his untimely death in 2006, Jim Baen was my favorite editor in Science Fiction or Fantasy. His publishing imprint, Baen Books, could always be counted upon for fun, and often produced truly excellent new authors like David Weber, John Ringo, or Michael Z. Williamson. And I remember that the old "Galaxy Readers", that collected Galaxy magazine short stories from the H.L. Gold days, were some of my favorite short story collections ever. So I was delighted to find this collection in a free book bin recently. Sadly, the collection did not live up to expectations. In fact, it was not impressive, and for a "Best Of" collection, downright terrible. My only guess is that these stories come from the fading days of Galaxy, when the magazine couldn't afford to pay much of anything for stories. A pity, in it's heyday Galaxy was a superb magazine.
The Dreaming Void by Peter F. Hamiton - Hamilton generally writes "doorstop" novels, and this one is no exception. He could probably make a living selling his writing by the pound. However, his stories are always fascinating, full of great ideas and wide in scope. This novel, the first in a new series, is no exception. It ends abruptly, as Hamilton novels are wont to do, and I can't wait for the sequel.

Down, but not out...

2008-05-04T21:32:03Z

In the lengthening war between a poor, innocent, well-meaning suburban home owner (me!) and the physical embodiment of all the forces of darkness and evil (my house) I have emerged generally triumphant from another unexpected battle.

I was home Thursday night, and up late, when all of the sudden the lights all went dim. Oh no - I've seen THIS before! Another brown out. Luckily, it was not quite as severe as last October's brown out, and I was able to rush around and turn things off before any of them blew up. (It probably helps that most of the sensitive devices that burned out last October havn't been repaired yet, so they weren't plugged in.) I called the power company, only to find out that they had no idea when things would be repaired. So yet another night at the motel down the street, where they are starting to recognize me as a "regular". I mentioned this at work on Friday, that I was a regular at the local motel, which in retrospect may not have been the best idea.

The good news is that when I came home late Friday afternoon, the power was back on. I had to turn the house circuit back on before things would start up; you always have to turn the power off completely in a brownout. But once I got it back on, I saw that the only thing in the house to blow this time was the digital dimmer switch in the bathroom. The same one I replaced six months ago. Didn't have time to fix it then, as I was busy on Friday and Saturday evening, but today I had time for a quick trip to Home Depot. Got the switch, and was getting ready to work on it when the phone rang.

It was my dad calling to say hello. That was fine, I can do two things at once. So I'm talking to him on the phone while I'm wandering out to the garage to find the circuit breaker to the bathroom. I'm telling him the latest about what's going on at work while I'm flipping breakers, trying to figure out which is the right one. Suddenly, the phone line goes dead. I suddenly realize that I'm NOT on my cell phone, and I've just switched the power off in the room that has the base unit to the cordless phone that I'm speaking into. Sigh.

After a quick redial and apology (and having to listen to some amused laughter) I started to work on the switch. Since I've done this once recently, it didn't take long to get everything taken apart, rewired, and put back together. Since the job was very straightforward and quick, I didn't do my usual multi-stage process of wiring in the switch, turning the power back on to test it while it's dangling from the wall, and then turn the power back off to put the switch back in the wall, mount the box, and attach the faceplate. I just went ahead and wired everyting and sealed everything back up in one stage.

Why do I do this, I ask myself? The house is just waiting to pounce on me when I exhibit overconfidence...

You see, whoever wired the electrical box in the bathroom didn't bother to use standard color coding on the electrical wires in the box. I'd expect to see a black wire for the hot line, a green or bare for the ground, and a white or red for the load line. Instead, there are two black wires and a bare ground. So I thought I knew the hot from the load by checking which wire was attached to what pole on the old switch.

Yeah, sure.

When I turned the power back on and tried it, nothing happens. Of course. So back out to the garage to turn the circuit breaker back off. Take all six screws out of the faceplate (it's a three switch plate) and remove it. Take the two mounting screws out and remove the switch box. Cut the electrical tape that's wrapped around the joins between the leads from the wall and the wires on the switch and peel it off of the twist caps. Untwist the caps from the connected wires, and pull apart the wires. Switch the leads with each other, and retwist them into the insulated cap. Wrap fresh electrical tape around the two caps. Shove the wires back into the wall and position the box over the screw holes. Put the two box mounting screws back in. Put the wall plate back on the wall. Discover that in putting the switch back in I've shifted it one eighth of an inch to the right, and the wall plate no longer lines up with all three switches. Unscrew the switch box slightly, and move it one eighth of an inch to the left. Tighten it down and put the wall plate back on. Put the six screws back to hold on the wall plate. Turn circuit breaker back on. Voila! Light.

However, that wasn't the end of things. When I came home on Friday, I had to park the car in the driveway then let myself into the house through the front door, since while the power was off I wasn't able to use the garage door opener. Once I turned the power back on, I opened the garage door from the inside. When I did, I noticed an unusually large puddle inside the garage door. This seemed odd, as I didn't remember even getting a puddle there when it rained. So I looked around and discovered that the gutter on the front of the house was falling off the wall! I could see sky between the gutter and the facing above the garage door, and the rest of the gutter was twisted and pulling away from the wall. The section that was pulled away was also hanging down low enough to collect water and leak it over the edge to create my new puddle. So I grab my ladder and hammer, and climb up there and refasten the 25 foot or so section of gutter back to the facing.

Then, I decided to throw some stuff in the laundry. Got that going, and went back upstairs to put my tools away after the gutter work. Went back downstairs to the laundry with the tools, and discovered a puddle of water leaking out from under the washing machine. Aargh. It wasn't much, and a bit of inspection makes me think that it's probably just a loose or bad drain hose connection, which I can probably fix in a minute or two once I drag the washing machine out away from the wall. But it's just one more indignity visited upon me by my malevolent house.

On the plus side, this time I was actually able to find the type of light switch that I used to have in the bathroom, and that I like much better than the one that was in there the last six months. This one is a touch dimmer switch, it goes on and off from just a touch, and if you hold your finger on the place, it dims up or down and keeps the brightness setting wherever you leave it. It warms the spot in my heart that likes simple and useful gadgets. :) And I've also discovered (when I was on the phone with DTE about the power) that Detroit Edison takes claims for items damaged in power outages. So I'm having them mail me the appropriate forms, and perhaps I'll get something back for the items that all blew up in October's brown-out. I hope so, since my homeowner's deductible, combined with the general state of depreciation for the items I had, made it not worth filing an insurance claim.

I'm also feeling a bit better about these two brown outs after talking to my neighbor. Turns out that they lost their furnace and refrigerator in the October brown out! Makes me realize that I got off lucky.

I'm starting to think that perhaps an Exorcism might not be a bad idea. I wonder what the rate sheet for that kind of service runs?

delosd @ 2008-04-26T03:34:00

2008-04-26T07:35:46Z

Don't just dream it, be it. Be your very own jet plane - and leave the birds behind.