Monday, January 31, 2005

What Is Our Country Coming To?

My view of the people who live in the same country as I becomes very dim when I read stories about students who believe the Press should be more restricted. This goes along with having to listen a pop music morning show where the hosts mistakenly believe that just because our Founding Fathers were Christains, that pushing Christianity on everyone is okay. I'm really getting sick of it.

People I used to work with said that this country is already a theocracy, not a democracy. I love what this country was founded on, but I hate the people ruling it right now. I hate that the citizens of this country are so lazy and willing to go along with whatever they hear on the radio or tv that they don't question that our rights under the Constitution are slowing disappearing. My only hope is for a revolution of thought where the corruption of the President etc. are exposed and people finally see what's happening here. Sadly, I'm not sure it's possible, especially after November. The American Way Of Life is ending unless people wake up and start taking action to reverse this.

Saturday, January 29, 2005

A Fresh Cuppa

Regular readers will notice that In Java, Literally... has been blessed with a new design. I have the lovely Cherry at Web Divas to thank. The inspiration for this template has been perking for awhile, and I was fortunate to find someone who was able to make it happen for me at a very reasonable price. Comments are welcome.

For those not in the know, the whole premise of this blog was inspired by Java's, formerly Java Joe's, in Rochester, NY where I spent many nights throughout high school and college drinking excellent coffee, having fantastic conversations with friends, listening to live music by whoever happened to drop by from neighboring Eastman School of Music, and scribbling down thoughts that often began with the play on words: "In Java, Literally..."

The Kissing Man

We saw Sideways last night. Yes, it is amazing that this movie came to Jamestown, but that's besides the point.

The point is that the lead actor, Paul Giamatti, had an early appearance in one of my favorite movies, Singles, as the "Kissing Man." For those who don't recall this scene or aren't aficionados of the movie, this is the scene where Linda and Steve are having lunch or coffee in a cafe and there's a couple noisily making out at the next booth. Steve and Linda are trying to talk, but keep getting distracted by the sucking-face action. The guy looks over at them and says, "What??" and his girlfriend mutters, "Ugh.. no privacy anymore" or something to that effect. Funny shit. There's a point of trivia for you today.

"It's not safe in Upstate..."

Matt F. clued me into this rap artist from the Rochester, NY area called Beneficial. He's written a song about Rochester, NY that's either hysterical or a shrewd commentary on the Greater Metro area. I think the hysterical part comes from part of the chorus where he mentions ".. the weather changes twice a week.." punctuated by "Rochester, New York!"

Here's another site with some bio background.

Wednesday, January 26, 2005

Fine Dining Returns To Jamestown

Over the past two months, two fine dining establishments have opened, or re-opened, in the city of Jamestown. Matt and I had dinner at The Ironstone last Monday. This restaurant has gone through several owners, a major fire, and other happenings to now be owned by the same group that owns Olive's, The Watermark, and La Fleur in the Mayville area. The service was very professional, even though I had to giggle a little at the seriousness of our young waiter. Matt had the prime rib special that came with mashed horseradish potatoes. I had a the grilled ahi tuna with Asian cucumber salad. Both were excellent. For dessert, Matt had their molten chocolate dish which he compared to the chocolate souffle he had on our cruise, but better. I had the creme brulee, which was very good but I couldn't finish it. Matt sipped tea while I splurged on an Late Harvest Vidal Blanc ice wine from Heron Hill Winery. A very enjoyable dinner and we would definitely go back again.

Also now open next to the Reg Lenna Civic Center is Forte. The menu changes daily, so take a look. We're hoping to have dinner there sometime soon (maybe Valentine's Day? They take reservations *hint hint*).

Monday, January 24, 2005

Music Meme

Snagged this made-for-Julia meme fromWeblog Wannabe.

1. What’s the total size of music files on your computer?

12.7 GB and counting.

2. What is the last CD you bought?

U2- How to Dismantle An Atomic Bomb (Deluxe)


3. What is the last song you listened to before you read this post?

"Drop It Like It's Hot" - Snoop Dogg Featuring Pharrell. It was on MTV Hits and I had to look it up since I didin't catch the credits before the song began. Needless to say, I switched the channel pretty fast.

4. Name four songs that you listen to a lot or that mean a lot to you.

I am a melodic pop bitch so some of the songs I listen to a lot are just damn fun to sing along with, even if the lyrics don't always means something. Songs that are guaranteed to please include The Format "The First Single," TrebleCharger "Brand New Low," Leona Naess "Charm Attack," and XTC "The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead." Some of these mean a lot. I'm not getting into it *sticks out tongue*

5. Which three people are you passing the baton on to and why?

Whoever the hell wants to copy this and blog it as well. It's a MEME for god's sake!

Sunday, January 23, 2005

A Tangential Post

Ok, since it's been days, I decided to write one of my famous tangential posts. I say famous only because I'm known to do this in real life occasionally.

My former boss makes me laugh. Apparently, while on the radio the other day, our County Executive said that Governor Pataki should "git'er done" in terms of his Medicaid plan. I don't know if it was intentional or if he just watched The Blue Collar Comedy Tour one too many times. I think it would be funny for him, or any elected official, to say that straight to the Guv's face or any of the "three men in a room."

We took advantage of our self-imposed "snow day" yesterday to do many, many loads of laundry. When I sorted everything out, you couldn't walk through our upstairs hallway. I told Matt this could never happen again.

Speaking of snow, I'm disappointed that once again, Jamestown gets screwed. I look at the RADAR and stories from New England and think, "Why the hell do they get all the fun?" Seriously, we were set to just hang out at home while the snow piled on around us and then all we got was about a foot of the white stuff. I can't even remember the last time we had a blizzard warning! I know, count me among the strange there. At least I got a chance to whip through two books (total now 5 for the week) last night.

However, I am glad the snow waited until Saturday to hit here since Friday night was our agency's annual winter party. A good time. It was kind of odd in a way since I hadn't been to a company-wide event like that since my first summer working at the radio station in Jamestown. You get used to seeing co-workers in a certain context, and then to see them at a party, drinking, grooving to the DJ, and having fun, doesn't seem quite natural. It's like the feeling you would get as a kid when you'd run into one of your teachers in the "real world." You'd think, "Ms. Royer buys groceries?? She EATS?? What's up with that?! I thought she went home, read books, philosophized to her cat, and came up with new ways to torture our English class." Well, I knew that wasn't true either since my mom has been a teacher from the time I was in middle school. I have to admit that it still freaks me out occasionally that she talks about me to former teachers, although those numbers are dwindling as many retire.

Matt made us scrambled eggs & sausage for breakfast this morning. I had envisioned getting to that before he did and trying my hand at a British Fry Up, but he offered to cook so I took him up on it since I had made pancakes for breakfast yesterday and macaroni & cheese (the boxed stuff) later in the day for lunch/dinner. People that know me in a personal, every day sense know that this amount of cooking is pretty impressive for me. Anyway, I had a fry-up on Easter Day in 1995 while on an 8-day concert tour of England with the Rochester Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. The beans, greasy eggs, sausage, potatoes, and tomatoes all cooked in one pan before being transferred to a big, white plate just fit the bill that day. Plus, our homestay family made the most wonderful tea. It probably was just something from Tesco, but it tasted pretty fantastic. Anyway, my obsession with finding, or cooking, a fry-up is not too unusual I guess since I did find a blog, eggsbaconchipsandbeans, that deals with this topic.

Ok then. Time for more tea. Thanks for letting me tangent there on this Sunday. It's a Sunday kind of thing.

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Liberally stolen from Buffalo Bloggers Buffalo Pundit & Byzantium's Shores.

Here's a list of the 50 worst songs of all time. You have to highlight the ones you actually LIKE.

1. We Built This City ... Starship (I hate to admit to this)
2. Achy Breaky Heart ... Billy Ray Cyrus
3. Everybody Have Fun Tonight ... Wang Chung
4. Rollin' ... Limp Bizkit
5. Ice Ice Baby ... Vanilla Ice (the ultimate sing along on the ski bus!)
6. The Heart of Rock & Roll ... Huey Lewis and the News
7. Don't Worry, Be Happy ... Bobby McFerrin
8. Party All the Time ... Eddie Murphy
9. American Life ... Madonna
10. Ebony and Ivory ... Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder
11. Invisible ... Clay Aiken
12. Kokomo ... The Beach Boys
13. Illegal Alien ... Genesis
14. From a Distance ... Bette Midler
15. I'll Be There for You ... The Rembrandts (Oh just try not to clap your hands at *that* spot!)
16. What's Up? ... 4 Non Blondes
17. Pumps and a Bump ... Hammer
18. You're the Inspiration ... Chicago
19. Broken Wings ... Mr. Mister
20. Dancing on the Ceiling ... Lionel Richie
21. Two Princes ... Spin Doctors
22. Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American) ... Toby Keith
23. Sunglasses at Night ... Corey Hart
24. Superman ... Five for Fighting
25. I'll Be Missing You ... Puff Daddy featuring Faith Evans and 112
26. The End ... The Doors
27. The Final Countdown ... Europe
28. Your Body Is a Wonderland ... John Mayer
29. Breakfast at Tiffany's ... Deep Blue Something (Even saw them in concert)
30. Greatest Love of All ... Whitney Houston
31. Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm ... Crash Test Dummies (Oh come on.. this is quality stuff!)
32. Will 2K ... Will Smith
33. Barbie Girl ... Aqua
34. Longer ... Dan Fogelberg
35. Shiny Happy People ... R.E.M. (Featuring the chick from the B-52s).
36. Make Em Say Uhh! ... Master P featuring Silkk, Fiend, Mia-X and Mystikal
37. Rico Suave ... Gerardo
38. Cotton Eyed Joe ... Rednex (I don't know what's wrong with me)
39. She Bangs ... Ricky Martin
40. I Wanna Sex You Up ... Color Me Badd
41. We Didn't Start the Fire ... Billy Joel
42. The Sound of Silence ... Simon & Garfunkel
43. Follow Me ... Uncle Kracker
44. I'll Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That) ... Meat Loaf
45. Mesmerize ... Ja Rule featuring Ashanti
46. Hangin' Tough ... New Kids on the Block
47. The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You ... Bryan Adams
48. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da ... The Beatles
49. I'm Too Sexy ... Right Said Fred (It's fun to dance to)
50. My Heart Will Go On ... Celine Dion ("Yooooo'rrrreeeeee HEEEERRRRREEE!! There's NOOOOTHING I FEAR!".. I know... all respect just went out the window for me)

What's My Age Again?

Holy Cow! Nearly dead on!

Stolen from Erin-Go-Blog




You Are 27 Years Old



27





Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe.

13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world.

20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences.

30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more!

40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax.



Tuesday, January 18, 2005

When Making Up a Snow Day Back Fires

The Warren, PA Central School district may have a small p.r. problem on their hands. Fast and furious discussion on one of our local radio morning shows tipped me off about this item. It seems that to make up for a snow day earlier this winter season, the districted opted to have students make up the day yesterday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Now it isn't uncommon for a school district to take away a holiday in order to make up a snow day, but there are a couple issues for Warren Central Schools here:

1. The District could have canceled the Teacher In-Service day the Friday leading into the holiday weekend.

2. Warren County already has a problem with being viewed as non-discriminatory since the KKK did hold a rally in the city of Warren within the past five years. I cannot confirm this, but I also hear they do have a local branch of the KKK in Warren, PA.

Now, I'm not an expert in school administration, but from a public relations standpoint, I think there are ways to overcome this in future years. A superintendent of a school district anywhere in Western New York, or an area that often receives significant snow fall, should be proactive about snow days. Instead of hoping the weather won't suck and, therefore, not planning any snow days for the school year, you can do what one Rochester-area school district did this year. They started early. I believe that the West Irondequoit School district (my alma mater *ahem*) has had at least one snow day this school year, but now they don't have to worry about making it up. In fact, if they stay snow-day free for the rest of the year, students will get to get out early.

Thursday, January 13, 2005

Jamestown First City In New York State To Go Wireless

The city of Jamestown has installed a wireless network for its police force. Here's two takes on the story.

The Local News Side - courtesy of The Jamestown Post-Journal

Public Safety Goes Wireless
Jamestown Becomes First City In New York State To Cut Lines On Communications

By Loren Kent

The eyes and ears of city officials around New York State are on Jamestown. City officials marked the beginning of "something really big" as the city became the first in New York state to utilize wireless broadband communication for city utilities and public safety.

The "unwiring" ceremony at City Hall marked the beginning of a 100 percent wireless fidelity network for public safety communications in the city. "I trust that our local electricians have disconnected this wire from any power supply," Mayor Sam Teresi joked as he cut a wire representing Jamestown’s severing from traditional computer ties and marking the city’s advancement to wireless communication. "But, I want you to all join hands with me anyway as I do this."

Direct broadband access to critical information such as local records, mugshot photo displays, the sex offender database and other sensitive databases is now available through the use of wireless lap-top computers and PDA’s to city police officers working in the field. The city contracted with Tropos Networks, the leading supplier of equipment used to build metro-scale broadband networks, to create the communications system.

"Today, we have effectively unwired our downtown area using Tropos wireless fidelity equipment," Teresi said. "We plan to use the newly formed communications network to improve public safety and increase the productivity of our city workers out in the field." In this first phase of deployment, the city plans to use the new wireless fidelity network to enable police and fire department professionals to have mobile access from lap-tops and Personal Digital Assistants in the field.
See WIRELESS on Page A-3

"The Tropos wireless fidelity network in downtown Jamestown extends to workers and officers in the field," said William MacLaughlin, police chief and public safety director. "It allows workers to access multiple, secure databases that were previously only available to use in the police headquarters."

The city was able to make use of the new technology without expense to local taxpayers through federal grant money. "We were able to utilize money allocated in the 2002 COPS More grant, which was acquired through the Jamestown Police Department," Teresi said. "This is the beginning of something really big."

Public safety officials now have the means to view live security camera video feeds on their computers in their vehicles as well. After the public safety network is fully implemented, use of the network will be extended to other city agencies, including the Board of Public Utilities, Development Department, Department of Public Works, local housing inspectors, court and City Hall security, and other city government agencies to enhance productivity to the public.

"Police officers now have access to anything that is currently on our network 100,000 times faster," said Capt. Lee Davies of the JPD. "It is a tremendous advantage for police officers to have the ability to view mug-shots and other data from their patrol cars — it increases public safety and the personal safety of officers."

Wally Haase, BPU general manager; Dr. Lillian Vitanza Ney, R-At Large and council president, and Anthony Dolce, R-Ward 2 and Public Safety Committee chairman, were also on-hand. The second phase of the wireless fidelity network deployment will partner the Jamestown Police Department with the Jamestown Public School system in improving school security. The collaborative effort is funded through the acquisition of a Secure Our Schools federal grant. "Officers will soon be able to view live video feeds from cameras located within the schools to assist with responding to incidents at the school," Davies said.
Send comments to lkent@post-journal.com.



The General Newsie Side - courtesy of WIVB-Buffalo:

Jamestown Police Department Unveils New Technology

Police in Jamestown have some new high-tech equipment to help them keep the streets safer. News 4's Kathy Swenson reports on the "unwiring" ceremony of the new Metro-Scale Wi-Fi network for public safety.

Jamestown police say it's not just new technology, it's a brand new way to fight crime.

There's literally no strings attached to this new crime fighting partner.

Every officer in Jamestown, Chautauqua County, is now armed with wireless information everywhere they go.

The Jamestown Police Department unveiled its new state of the art "Wi-Fi" technology Wednesday.

Over the past couple of months, a company called Tropos Networks worked to turn Jamestown into a wireless hub.

Eventually, Jamestown officials plan to expand the use of the Wi-Fi technology to include several public safety entities, including housing inspectors, court and City Hall security as well as other city agencies.



The Techie Side - courtesy of Unstrung:

Bigger is better in the world of wireless LAN this week:

Troposphere: Wireless LAN mesh startup Tropos Networks has unveiled its latest 802.11 deployment in Jamestown, N.Y.

The firm has put together a wireless public safety network that covers just over two square miles in Jamestown. The network uses 37 Tropos boxes -- 35 out in the open and two indoors -- each providing around a quarter mile of wireless coverage.

"It's quite hilly," says Tropos's marketing man Bert Williams of Jamestown.

The firm is also working on its WiMax strategy. Williams says Tropos is already in discussion with vendors about doing "some sort of interoperability partnership."

This is the first stage of Tropos's WiMax strategy, using third-party units to provide backhaul for its wireless LAN mesh boxes. Eventually, the firm hopes to develop its own WiMax mesh products, which should boost the range of its wireless products.

Wednesday, January 12, 2005

Cold or Flu?

While I'm feeling much better today than yesterday, when I had some anxiety that I was coming down with the flu. Then I found this symptoms chart and discovered that I have, alas, a cold. No treatment other than getting sleep and plenty of fluids in hopes that it won't turn into anything worse, like a sinus infection.

Our current weather patterns aren't helping much either.

Saturday, January 08, 2005

Because I'm in a Saturday Goof-Off Mood

I needed a break from honest blogging, so here's a set of blog quizzes that I did on my day off.





You Are From Venus



You love all forms of beauty. You love dressing up and anything luxurious.
A social butterfly, you're incredibly popular and a great host.
You're known for your fairness and affection. And as a frind to all.
Careful though! You're desire to please may make you too willing to conform.
Be yourself. Focus on what matters to you. You'll be all the more popular for it.



Like this is any surprise





Your Dominant Intelligence is Musical Intelligence



Every part of your life has a beat, and you're often tapping your fingers or toes.
You enjoy sounds of all types, but you also find sound can distract you at the wrong time.
You are probably a gifted musician of some sort - even if you haven't realized it.
Also a music lover, you tend to appreciate artists of all kinds.

You would make a great musician, disc jockey, singer, or composer.



I AM 11% WHITE TRASH!
11% WHITE TRASH
I, my friend, have class. I am so not white trash. . I am more than likely Democrat, and my place is neat, and there is a good chance I may never drink wine from a box.


Hmm.. that 11% must come from living in a rural city, which is an oxymoron of a sort.

Friday, January 07, 2005

Saving Lunenburg

I'm stealing a post from Gen X at 40 because it's important to me. To find out why, go read the original post here.

This is the very quaint and historic town of Lunenburg, Nova Scotia:

Lunenburg, Nova Scotia Posted by Hello

My parents, grandmother, and me visited back in May 2003 on our two-week tour of the Maritimes. While we only spent an afternoon in the town, it left an impression on me. The people in the visitor's centre were very friendly, our lunch was tasty, the shops were cute (where I picked up a calendar, coasters, shot glass, and other tourist-y items), and the vistas were beautiful. I told Matt we'd have to go there together some day. Let's hope whoever buys the Clearwater buildings has reasonable plans that fit the character of the town.

Americans Ambivalent About Bush

Apparently, Georgie isn't fairing too well in the polls. The story has several quotes from people basically saying that while they supported George W. Bush after the terrorist attacks, they're not too happy with him now. I'll go on record saying that I always thought George W. Bush was and is a fuck up.

And How Are We Today?

I am not getting sick. I simply can't be. That's why I take echinacea! Phoo. Well, my throat has gradually become more sore each day this week. It's not terrible, but it's not comfortable either. I've also been fairly tired, but getting up at 6:30am and driving 45 minutes each way to and from work sometimes takes the starch out of you. I'm looking forward to tomorrow, when I can sleep away the morning. I did have one of those panic moments today when I thought it might actually be Thursday and not Friday.

Thursday, January 06, 2005

It's Time for the 2005 Bloggies!

Nominations are being taken for the 2005 Bloggies. Go vote for your favorite blogs in 30 categories from the past year.

And since I have so much faith in being nominated for an award, here's something to amuse myself (via Weblog Wannabe:


awarded to
In Java, Literally
in the category of
"World\'s Best Weblog"

Snow, Ice, & Rain

The weather has been interesting the past couple of days. Even though it was a bit of nuisance, I enjoyed cracking the creme brulee-like layer of ice on top of the snow that coated my car this morning. Even though almost all the schools had closed in the county, the ice and snow had melted making the roads just fine for driving. In fact, driving to work was easier today than yesterday when I had to pump my brakes while going down Airport Hill to avoid sliding into traffic or down a steep incline. The trick will be seeing how everything cooperates for tonight. We're supposed to get more snow and the wind is going to pick up. I don't think it'll be to terrible since all that snow will get weighed down by the slush on the ground, meaning there won't be anything for the wind to blow around. On top of that, the temperature has been warm enough today that icing shouldn't be too terrible on limbs and other wind-vulnerable objects. I'm also hoping that all the salt the state has been laying down on Route 60 will make for a mostly okay drive home.

Tuesday, January 04, 2005

Helping In 360 Degrees Fashion

For the past week and in the coming weeks, you will be reading, hearing, and seeing a lot of appeals for your help in regards to the tsunami victims. Since most of you probably visit Amazon.com and have wish lists there, I suggest you wander back there today to their Disaster Relief page. Donate $5. It's not hard. Seriously, what is $5? A sandwich? Your daily frapu-mocha-latte-cino from Starbucks?

And after you've done that and you've started patting yourself on the back, call the Red Cross (1-800-448-3543), or visit their Blood donation site to find out how you can donate blood. It's only fair that while you help those in need abroad that you extend the hand to those who need it at home.

International aid organizations:
UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund)
United Nations' World Food Programme
Medecins Sans Frontieres / Doctors without Borders (donate!)
CARE International
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies

UK/Europe:
Disasters Emergency Comittee (DEC) - comprises a raft of aid agencies, including the below and others
British Red Cross
Oxfam
Save the Children UK

North America:
American Red Cross
Canadian Red Cross
Save The Children
Oxfam America

Anders Jacobsen: Webloggers: Give to tsunami victims and I'll give too!

Monday, January 03, 2005

You are British Columbia!

Taken from Erin-go-blog!:

HASH(0x8b3c2a4)
You're British Columbia. You're hip and happenin'
but also a nice person who isn't a snob. Career
is important to you but it isn't your whole
life. People assume that your life is perfect
and that you have it all, like you were born
with a silver spoon in your mouth. But it's not
true; you do have your own set of troubles just
like everybody else.


What Canadian Province Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

I was hoping for Nova Scotia, honestly.

Cutting to the Scene with the Pixie

Ten years ago, I decided to do one of the most drastic things I had ever done to my hair. I went from a long style (below collarbone) to a p...