The SoapBoxers

It was a great sports day for me. Two of my least favorite sports figures made the news.

The twice retired quarterback Brett Favre told my Minnesota Vikings that he does intend to stay retired this time. I truly hope that this is his final answer. I have a great deal of dislike for Brett from his days playing for the Packers, and I would be unable to cheer for my Vikings if he was the starting quarterback. Most likely, I would have to take a short sabbatical until Favre hung up his cleats for the third time. Luckily, it appears that I will not need to go down this route.

Overshadowing Favre’s decision was the news that LA Dodgers superstar Manny Ramirez was being suspended 50 games (and losing more than $7 million in salary as a result) after testing positive for HCG, a female fertility drug. This drug is often used by steroid users to bring their testosterone level back to a normal level after steroid use had dropped it to a very low level.

Manny claims that he was given a prescription by a doctor who was not aware that the drug was on baseball’s banned substances list. I’m not buying that excuse, for a couple of reasons. First, it’s not the doctor’s responsibility to verify that a drug is OK to take, it is Manny’s responsibility. Check with the team’s medical staff and your union rep if you’re not sure. Second, Manny has decided not to appeal the suspension. If he was telling the truth, why not fight the allegation? Millions of dollars and the Hall of Fame may be at stake.

The Dodgers were already pulling away in the NL West and might have already printed playoff tickets. It will be interesting to see what they can do without Manny. They do have a decent player to plug into the spot in Juan Pierre, but Pierre’s bat does not even begin to compare to Manny’s.

Ryne Dee Sandberg was born on September 18, 1959 in Spokane, Washington.  The son of an undertaker was an all-around great athlete in high school (at the same time that fellow Spokane athletes Mark Rypien and John Stockton were leading their own Spokane schools).  Many expected Sandberg to attend Washington State University to play quarterback, where he had signed a letter of intent.

The Philadelphia Phillies drafted him in the 20th round of the 1978 draft in hopes that he would change his mind.  Sandberg did indeed decide to play baseball.  He came up through the Phillies minor league system as a third baseman.  This presented a bit of a challenge for Ryno.  To say that his path to the majors was blocked was an understatement.  Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt manned the hot corner for the Phillies.

Prior to the 1982 season, the Phillies ran into problems negotiating a contract extension with shortstop Larry Bowa.  The talks eventually got contentious enough that they decided to trade Bowa.  They found a willing partner in the Chicago Cubs, who were willing to give up their own shortstop, Ivan DeJesus.  The Cubs wanted a young prospect in the deal, as well.  Phillies GM Paul Owens was hesitant to trade Sandberg, but the Cubs insisted on having him, and the Phillies’ own scouts were not particularly optimistic about Sandberg’s chance of success.  This trade became the counterweight to the Lou Brock – Ernie Broglio trade in Cubs lore.

Sandberg was the starting third baseman for the Cubs in 1982 and finished 6th in the Rookie of the Year balloting.  The Cubs acquired third baseman Ron Cey that offseason and decided to try Sandberg at second base instead.  Sandberg excelled at his new position, winning a Gold Glove (the first of nine consecutive) in his first year at the position.

In 1984, Sandberg came of age. In the defining game of the year for Ryno, he hit dramatic home runs in the 9th and 10th innings of a nationally televised game that Cubs would eventually win in the 11th inning against their hated rivals, the Cardinals. Impressively, he hit both home runs off Hall of Fame closer Bruce Sutter.  

After hitting a total of 15 homers in his first two seasons, Sandberg smacked 19 (a pretty decent number for the time) in 1984, while also accumulating 19 triples.  He hit .314 and stole 32 bases in 39 attempts (his third consecutive season with 30+ steals).  He led to Cubs to a division title and to the very brink of the World Series.  Sandberg was honored with the National League Most Valuable Player award.

Sandberg quietly worked on putting together a Hall of Fame caliber career.  He was the dominant second baseman of the 1980s.  In addition to stellar defense (at one point, playing a record 123 consecutive errorless games) he also set a record (later broken) with 277 homers as a second baseman (he had 282 career homers, but 5 were hit as a third baseman).  He also brought speed to the table, stealing 20+ bases in 9 different seasons, topping out at 54 steals in 1985.  Sandberg also hit 20+ homers in 6 different seasons.  In 1990, he set a career high with 40 homers while driving in 100 runs and batting .306. 

Sandberg’s power numbers dropped in 1993 (9 homers) and his hitting deserted him nearly completely in 1994.  Sandberg had lost the desire to play, and retired from the game.  Although Sandberg has stated that he was not having any marital problems at the time, there are some very prevalent and unsavory rumors regarding Sandberg’s first wife.  If these rumors are based on fact, a lack of focus would be completely understandable.

In 1996, a newly remarried and rejuvenated Sandberg re-joined the Cubs.  He hit a lackluster .244, but hit 26 homers.  After one more season in 1997, Sandberg called it quits for good.  The missing seasons of 1994 (he retired after playing just 57 games) and 1995 cast some doubt about Sandberg’s Hall of Fame chances.  However, Sandberg was elected in his third year of eligibility, squeaking in with 76% of the vote (75% is needed).

Sandberg was always a big hit with the fans, being named to 10 All Star teams. Ryno was a quiet star, never seeked out the media attention. Off the field, he has been a big supporter of the Juvenile Diabetes foundation.

Sandberg has aspirations of some day becoming a Major League manager.  In 2007 and 2008, he served as manager of the Cubs’ low-A team in Peoria, Illinois.  Peoria drew record crowds at home and on the road, as fans all over the midwest clamored at the chance to get an autograph.  A friend of mine was able to procure an autograph for my collection.  In 2009, Sandberg is serving as manager of the Cubs AA team in Tennessee.

My wife and I have a 20 month old daughter.  In the time since she was born, we have become very aware of which businesses are baby friendly and which are not.  Some places are so baby-unfriendly that we don’t go there any more – and likely won’t return even after our daughter is older.  So, what can a business (in particular, a restaurant) do to retain customers who now have a little one?

Changing stations

Changing stations are probably the single most critical factor.  If you are a restaurant and you don’t have changing stations, there is a very good chance that you will lose some customers.  Some places are still embracing stereotypes from decades ago by placing changing stations only in the women’s bathrooms.  Seriously, folks, get with the program.  There are a lot of men changing diapers these days.  I’m sure the changing stations are not a trivial expense, but you’ll come out ahead in the long run.  Personally, I have been a bit fan of the changing stations at Target stores.  Oddly, we have encountered isolated situations in a Wal-Mart and in a McDonalds where there were no changing stations in the men’s bathroom.  This was especially surprising for a business that is as kid-focused as McDonalds.

High chairs

If you’re a restaurant, have high chairs.  Just as importantly, have high chairs that are clean and functional.  We have encountered a multitude of dirty high chairs (Pampers wipes to the rescue!) and quite a few that are broken (usually a problem with the restraining straps).  This gives parents a bad first impression of your restaurant.  Spend a bit of time on QA and fix the problems with the chairs before the customers see them.  Often, it doesn’t seem that the problem would be difficult fo fix.  As for the cleanliness of the chairs, it only makes sense to clean them after each use.

Kids meals

Have at least a few options on the kids menu.  I’m not suggesting that you need twenty different entrees; just bear in mind that not every kid in the world loves chicken fingers (although, admittedly, most of them do).  Also, consider different portion sizes for different prices.  An 18 month old is not going to eat as much as a five year old.  Also, don’t ask if the parents of a three month old need a kids menu.  They don’t, trust me 🙂

Each year the first Saturday in May rolls around….and the casual horseracing fan in all of us takes over. It is much like the Indianapolis 500, or Wimbledon.  You may not follow the sport at all, but one week out of the year you tune in.  You watch.  You might even host or go to a “Derby party” Heck many of you might even head to your local track or simulcast racing establishment and throw a couple of bucks on your lucky number.

That is probably the only way you had the #8 horse in the Eleventh Race at Churchill Downs this past Saturday.

Mine That Bird, a 50-1 long shot came from seemingly Paducah down the stretch to go from 15th to 1st to win by a number of lengths under a great ride by Jockey Calvin Borel.  Borel coincidentally became just the seventh jockey to win both the Kentucky Oaks, which is run on Friday, and then pull off the double header with the Derby winner on Saturday.  This alone is no small feat. There are great story lines all over the place here.  A virtual unknown horse.  Trained in New Mexico, which I don’t think anyone would argue is exactly the bastion of thoroughbred racing in this country.  Originally purchased for a mere nine thousand and five hundred dollars as a yearling and racing against horses that sold for multiple millions with proven bloodlines and high hopes.

The Bird is the Word!

Normally NBC does a magnificent job of broadcasting the Kentucky Derby. It is one of their marquee events of the year.  But this year, a lot did not go to script.

First off, heavy rains inundated the area.  This made for in racing language what is referred to as an off track.  Of course Churchill Downs is one of the best facilities in the world, so it was described as a fast wet track…aka – a nice way to say it is muddy and sloppy.

Secondly, no one saw this winner coming. Even the Great Tom Durkin, who calls many of the most prominent races on television seemed to be out of sorts as the Bird flew by a multitude of also rans along the rail.  It took a few seconds, well after Borel had grabbed the lead for good that Durkin announced he had hit the front of the field.

And finally, immediately after the race it was evident to me that NBC was scrambling to get some more coverage of the owner and trainer for this horse.  Normally the television crew is strategically positioned to keep an eye on the reactions of the owners and trainers in the stands.  Capturing all of their glee or agony as their horse is flying home down the stretch.

No Cameras seemed to be following trainer Bennie “Chip” Woolley.

The very long winded interview with Jockey Calvin Borel on the back stretch is a normal part of the coverage, but then after that there was a good couple of minutes of open mic coverage with the outrider and Borel yelling and pointing and celebrating with the crowd.  Talk about your can’t miss television.  No doubt Borel is an animated guy and the thrill of the moment was fun to watch.  But 30 seconds of this would have sufficed…But it did allow for NBC to get their folks in place to ask a bunch of stupid questions.

The brilliant line of questioning once again reported to Woolley that he had travelled all the way from New Mexico.  Via of all things….a motorized vehicle and not an airplane…in order to bring the horse to the race. Although you have all heard it by now, Woolley was on crutches, yet took the time to walk his horse out of the barn to the paddock complete with crutches and all in the muddy conditions.  “How long did it take to get here again Chip?”  ” How many miles is it to Churchill Downs”  Why ask the trainer? NBC had already mentioned these facts about ten times in the telecast.  Much to the guffaw of many at my household Woolley responded beautifully with something along the lines of “Maybe you guys will talk about something else now other than how far of a drive it was”

In the end, a brilliant and thrilling ride by a great Jockey, a great storyline on many fronts, and for the betting public out there, a smooth $103 to win ticket.  To all of you “experts” that did not see this one coming….

I guess they all got the bird.

Obama

We are past the 100 day mark in Barack Obama’s presidency. The country continues to find itself in a recession. The housing market slides further downward, and more Americans find themselves unemployed.  Detroit finds itself at the epicenter, with Chrysler filing for chapter 11 (reorganization) bankruptcy and GM taking drastic steps of its own – planning to shut down 16 of its 21 plants for 9 weeks during the summer and also planning to buy out 40% of its franchise agreements.

The country is divided on the job that the administration is doing. On Saturday, billionaire Warren Buffet said that he felt the government was taking the right steps to move out of the recession, although Buffett was not sure what the immediate future might hold.  On the other side, conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh continues to criticize the vast majority of moves that the Obama administration makes.

The central them that I have observed, however, is that the discussion of the administration has been centering on the policies they are implementing or intending to implement.  The fact that our president is African-American – something that were were constantly reminded of during the election – appears to be completely lost in the melee.  For that, I am pleased.  I feel that this does not diminish the importance of this step in our country’s history, but instead enhances it.  I optimistically believe that we are judging the president on his merits (or perceived merits) with little regard to the color of his skin.

On an Obama tangent, singer LaShell Griffin, who sang for Obama on the campaign trail, is giving free concerts.  Griffin asks that concertgoers donate to the homeless instead.  I know absolutely nothing about this woman, but that sounds pretty cool.

Arlen Specter

Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania turned a few heads by switching parties and becoming a Democrat.  Specter had actually been a Democrat in long-ago days, but had been a Republican since 1966.  Assuming that Al Franken eventually prevails in the Minnesota senate race, and furthing assuming that all Democrats follow party lines on cloture votes, the Democrats would have a filibuster-proof majority, as 60 Senators can invoke cloture to end debate on a bill and force a vote.

The wife of a co-worker was quite disappointed in Specter, saying that this should not be allowed, as people had voted for him as a Republican, and were now getting a Democrat instead.  I am an unaffiliated voter, and would hope that people would have voted for Specter based on his stance on the issues, rather than simply his party (although I realize that this is hopelessly optimistic).

So, why did Specter switch parties?  Most likely, because he was afraid of losing a primary contest to Pat Toomey, who is considerably more conservative.  Pennsylvania has been trending more democratic lately, and his views are moderate enough to win as a Democrat but probably not conservative enough to win as  Republican.

Jim Bunning

In news that is likely to make Republicans happy, Kentucky Senator Jim Bunning (a former Major League pitcher who threw two no-hitters, including a Father’s Day perfect game) appears to retiring at the end of his term, choosing to support Secretary of State Trey Grayson in the Republican Primary.  Bunning has exhibited some erratic behavior in recent years, and the GOP leadership has been trying to get him to agree not to run in 2010 for fear of losing the seat that Bunning narrowly defended in the 2004 election.  He had responded by threatening to step down immediately (which would allow Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear (a Democrat)  to appoint his replacement.  Beshear would likely have appointed a Democrat.  It appears that Bunning has decided to take the high road.

Jack Kemp

Jack Kemp,  former MVP of the American Football league and longtime congressman from New York, has died of cancer at the age of 78.  Kemp was a long shot to ever have a meaningful football career, being drafted in the 17th round of the NFL draft and being cut by several other teams before landing with the Buffalo Bills of the AFL (a league that competed with the NFL before they eventually merged).  He led the Bills to titles in 1964 and 1965.  After retiring from football, he ran for congress.  He served 9 terms in the House of Representatives before serving as secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President George H.W. Bush.  Kemp ran unsuccessfully for president in 1988 and vice president (with Bob Dole) in 1996.  For further information on the interesting life of Jack Kemp, check out his Wikipedia page.

To the KFC on Highway 1 in Iowa City

I love your food.  My favorite is probably the mashed potato bowl.  Mashed potatoes, gravy, corn, and little nuggets of chicken, all combined into one bowl.  What’s not to like?  I’m also a fan of the original chicken.  My wife also likes your food.

Unfortunately, I will never darken your door (or drive thru) again.  Why?  Because your service is absolutely dreadful.  Let me count the ways.

First, on multiple visits (months apart) I have come across a situation where the drive thru speaker is broken.  This isn’t apparent until you actually wait in line for a while.  It is frustrating to arrive at the ordering station and realize that you’re not going to be able to order your food until you get to the final window.  This creates an additional delay.  Getting this permanently fixed would be a high priority if I owned the KFC.

Second, the service is too slow.  It is common for me to wait 15-20 minutes in the drive thru when there are only a handful (3-4) cars ahead of me.  This is not the exception, this is the rule.  I’m not exaggerating, either.  Since this starting become an issue, I keep track of what time it is when I pull into the line.  I can actually put my car in “park” a couple of times while I am waiting.  One time, while waiting in line,  I was approached by an older gentleman (apparently from out of town) who wanted directions.  I was able to give him detailed directions and send him on his way – and the line had not moved forward even an inch during this time.  From what I can see of the inside of the restaurant, the service doesn’t seem much quicker there, either.  This is supposed to be fast food, but it’s really not fast.  I can get a pizza from my favorite restaurant as quickly as I can get a potato bowl from KFC.

Finally, your employees simply make too many mistakes.  There are frequently problems with the order.  A recent order had the wrong variety of chicken (extra crispy instead of original recipe) and didn’t have any gravy on the mashed potatoes.  The order was taken correctly, as the correct items are on the receipt – the order was simply fulfilled incorrectly.  We complained about that incident and received a postcard for a free meal.  I redeemed that a couple of night ago.  After a very long wait, I finally pulled up to the window and ordered (since the speaker was broken).  As the lady was putting things into the bag, I asked for honey and butter.  She tossed something in the bag, and I assumed she gave us both, instead of checking.  Nope, she didn’t include any butter.

Quite honestly, you’re no longer worth the hassle.  There are a lot of other restaurants in town, and most of them provide a much better experience for the customer.

Note that I do not believe that this is indicative of all KFC restaurants.  Over the years, I have eaten at many KFCs and have had a lot of positive experiences.

Traffic

Another month is in the books.  We surpassed 100 all-time posts, and there were 35 articles during the month of April.  We’re not getting a ton of traffic, but we do have a handful of regular visitors and a few others who drop by after seeing my comments in other folks’ blogs (notably LazyManAndMoney, ManVsDebt, FinancialNut, MasterYourCard, Purple Row, and SheInChina).  If you’re  a regular reader, leave a comment to introduce yourself.  I know who some of you are (howdy, Mandy and Mary), but I have no idea as to the indentity of others.  I’m intrigued by some of the regulars from other countries.  If you’re multi-lingual, it would be cool to see you introduce yourself in your first language and then provide a translation in English.

If you’re someone who dropped by from another blog, try us out for a week.  We don’t scratch a niche like most blogs, but have a mixture of topics during the week.  Be sure to check out Fiction Friday – I will post an original short story (written by me for this sole purpose) on Fridays.

Finances

It’s a good thing that I write for the pleasure of writing, instead of money.  Ad revenue for the month was $11.50 – or about 30 cents for each article we posted.  I won’t bother to calculate the hourly rate on that – needless to say, it’s rather low.  Hopefully traffic will pick up a bit in the coming months and cause upward movement on the financial side as well.  It would be nice to be able to buy a Pepsi or two with the ad revenue 🙂

Guest writers

I’ve had the pleasure of having a few guest writers during the month.  One of the guests became a staff writer for us (more about that later) and another is likely to have other articles appear on the site in the future.  I have actively pursued a few other people to write articles for the “a day in the life” series, which I personally enjoy reading.  I have received positive responses from several people, although I do not yet have any new segments in my hand.  I believe we’ll see a few of them in May, though.  I’m looking forward to a guest article that a fellow blogger is going to write.

The future

So, what does the future hold?  Well, it is likely that we will have at least one article on every single day from this point forward!  When I was the sole writer, it was sometimes difficult to write 7+ articles while balancing the blog with work and family life.  However, I am getting some help in this regard.  Johnny Goodman will be joining us as the weekly sports writer and Bob Inferapels will be writing a weekly entertainment column.  Note – although these are pen names, they do correspond to actual real people – they are not simply other factions of my mind.  The article’s byline will identify the author.

RSS and Twitter

Some of you have no doubt seen the  “subscribe via RSS” at the top left of the screen and wondered what on earth it is.  I won’t go into the technical details of RSS.  From a user perspective, RSS gives you a “one stop shop” to get updates for sites that are updated periodically (blogs, news sites, etc).  Think of this as a bulletin board – you tell people you want to know that they are doing (by subscribing to their RSS feed).  The next time you go to the bulletin board (RSS reader) you see all of the new articles.  Click on the subscribe via RSS link to get more information.  I’m not an RSS expert, but Google’s reader seem to do a good job.  If you follow several blogs, RSS is a great way to keep on top of them.

You can also get blog notifications on Twitter.  The Twitter updates will simply contain the title of the new article and a link to the article.  That is all.  No tweets about what I ate for breakfast or mini-rants about the moron who cut me off in traffic 🙁  Honestly, RSS is probably a better option for most people, but I decide to set up Twitter in case anyone wanted it.

Random factoid for the month

Baseball writer/analyst/god Bill James, who was largely responsible for a dramatic shift in the way that baseball players are analyzed, has a second passion – true crime.  This probably seems like an odd combination, but the weird thing is that I also have a deep interest in true crime.  If I am ever able to slip past Mr. James’ security staff (probably filled with ex Navy Seals and former CIA agents) and get a private chat with him, it will be nice to know that we can have a nice chat about serial killers if we run out of baseball topics.

Thanks, Luv, and Follow

I would like to thank everyone for their assistance with the blog.  This includes guest writers, staff writers, folks who write comments, the readers, folks who provide web hosting and technical assistance (Lazy Man), and people who have critiqued the blog for me (notably, Phil Ossifer).  We look forward to improving the reader experience in the future.  You can always email me at Kosmo@ObservingCasually.com with any questions or comments you might have.

In an effort to reward our commenters, we have implement the CommentLuv and Do-Follow plug-ins.  CommentLuv allows you to select a recent post from your own blog to be linked at the bottom of your comment.  This is why readers see link to the blogs of commenters such as Baker of ManVsDebt.

Do-Follow removes the “no-follow” tag that is typically affixed to links within the comment section of blogs.  The gist is that implementing “do-follow” will boost your your site’s Google ranking.  You don’t need to do anything to take advantage of this; it’s all under the hood, so to speak.

Neither of these plug-ins do anything for me (at least directly); I implemented them to reward the commenters who help make the blog more fun to read.

The intent of this post is to encourage people to share their thoughts on the swine flu.  I’ll start with my own.

Should we be afraid?

Sure, we should be somewhat afraid of a virus for which there is not currently a a vaccine.  There is, however, a fine line between preparedness and paranoia.  Just because a person has visited a location where there are verified cases does not mean that person will contract the swie flu. In fact, the odds are strongly against it.  Let’s take New York City, for example.  If there was one person with the swine flu in NYC and you traveled to NYC, what are the odds of you coming into contact with the person?  Not very good.

Mortality rate

People are dying from the swine flu; this is definitely true.  However, I really don’t think we are looking at the second coming of the black plague.  In fact, I seriously doubt that the death count will even be as high as the number of annual deaths from normal flu viruses (about 35,000 per year in the US.)

Pork products

The swine flu is an airborne virus.  You simply cannot get it from eating pork products.  There is no reason to avoid eating pork products (and, indeed, there are many good reasons to continue eating pork – the sensational taste of bacon being one great reason.)

How to avoid it

In general, people are being strongly encouraged to wash their hands frequently.  People who are sick – even if they do not have the swine flu – are being asked to stay home.  Doctors are being asked to test their patients if they have any reason to believe that the person might have the swine flu.  All of these are great suggestions, albeit simply a repitition of common sense. What is my point?  You should definitely be vigilant, but don’t go into panic mode.  This is not a disease that is going to wipe humanity from the face of the earth.

What are your thoughts?  I’d love to hear them – please leave a comment.

Andrew Olsen settled in for another night in his multi-million square foot home. He set a few motion detectors around the perimeter and secured his laptop. He settled in on the couch that daytime occupants used for informal meetings.  The motion detectors were connected to his cell phone via Bluetooth and would cause his phone to ring if anyone approached.  It was not unusual to see programmers crash at the office on occasion.  Aaron’s situation was slightly different.  Although he did put in some late night hours, it was mostly for show.  Aaron had decided to eschew the more private housing options preferred by his friends and spent each night in the comfort of the massive office building.

He was not completely free of lodging-related costs, of course.   Andrew rented a small storage facility where he could store his possessions.  As a recent college graduate, Andrew had not yet accumulated the large volume of personal possession that most people find themselves saddled with, so he was mainly storing clothes and books.  He visited the facility periodically to grab a different batch of clothes and a few new books to read.

Andrew also belonged to a local gym.  By most standards, it was a sub-par facility.  The weightlifting machines were obsolete, the basketball court was warped, and pieces of the running track had begun to come loose.  The gym, did, however, feature a first rate locker room.  The water was hot, the towels were fluffy, and the showers were clean.  Also, the gym was dirt cheap, even before considering the corporate discount.  Andrew began each day with a very light workout at the gym.  Andrew had no interest in exercise, of course.  This was just a ruse so that he could use the showers every day without attracting suspicion.

Andrew’s official residence, of course, was not the office,  the gym, or the storage facility.  It was PO Box 78655.  Andrew paid a visit to his mailbox once a week to pick up his rather small assortment of mail.  He had no mortgage, no electric bill, no landline phone bill, no cable television bill, not even a water bill.  Most often, Andrew found his box full of junk mail, with the occasional credit card bill.

After waking up, showering at the gym, and putting in a full day of work, Andrew typically escaped from the office for a few hours.  Occasionally, he would visit friends, although he never never asked them to visit him, of couse.  Sometimes he would eat out at a restaurant, although most nights he was happy to grab one of his frozen dinners from the break room freezer and toss it in the microwave.  Andrew did, however, enjoy the simple pleasures of life in the city.  He was a frequent visitor to the zoo, museums, and the library.

As late afternoon eventually gave way to evening, Andrew would return to the office.  The company had begun embracing a mobile concept, so it was very easy for him to move around without attracting attention.  Andrew spent much of his time surfing the internet, although he would often read while he pretended to wait for code to compile.  When the building finally dropped to a skeleton crew of zombied programmers – dead tired from incredibly long days – Andrew would find a couch in a deserted corner of the building and settle down to sleep for the night.  He moved around a lot, and while he was occasionally spotted by people, they just chalked it up to a programmer crashing after a hard day.  The next night, he would be in the opposite side of the complex, so nobody ever spotted a trend.

Andrew always had very pleasant dreams, as he counted the money that was was saving each month and counted down the days until he would be able to leverage this sacrifice into a down payment on his dream home.

A couple of news stories grabbed my attention today.

GM was unable to negotiate concessions with some of its bondholders and will have to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy.  This is reorganization bankruptcy, not liquidation bankruptcy.  The prevailing thought is that GM will emerge from bankruptcy in the hands of Fiat and the UAW.  Chryler will halt vehicle production for (at least) 60 days.  Their leasing arm will be folded into GMAC finance.  They will receive and additional $8 billion in bailout funds, which hopefully the taxpapayers will see returned to them at some point.  I have not seen any word on how this may affect the money that Chryslers spends on manufacturer support of Dodge teams in NASCAR (Dodge is a Chrysler brand).

On the bright side for buyers, this might be a good time to buy a Chrysler vehicle.  Demand will likely sag on the news, but the warranties will now be guaranteed by the government.  With the recent news of GM “temporarily” closing 16 of its 21 plants and planning to buy ou 40% of its dealers, Ford looks to be in prime position to pick up some market share from the segment of the population that will only buy American vehicles.

The other story came out of Los Angeles.  A 72 year old sex offender gave his DNA sample, as required by state law.  The DNA got a match with a rape kit from murder victim Ethel Sokoloff, a 68 year old woman who was killed in 1972.  As a result,  John Thomas Jr. has been charged in two murders (Sokoloff’s and another crime in 1976).  Police believe that Thomas may be the “Southland Strangler” who may have killed more than 30 women (and raped many more) since 1955.

This has to be the mother of all cold cases.  Even if you were able to crack the case of a serial killer who began his reign of terror 54 years ago, the odds of the perpetrator still being alive are not very good.  I have an interest in crime, and I intend to write a bigger article on the story next week, after getting a chance to sesearch it a bit more.