Concrete achievements

I can geek out on a variety of subjects, the range of which is a little distressing (or, if you hold your head just right, rather comforting). I usually think of geekery as relating to high tech, perhaps because folks in computer subcultures were among the first to claim "geek" as a compliment to their interest and expertise — rather than the traditional comparison to the lowest sideshow performers. Or I may see geekery as high tech because because technology is involved in many of my enthusiasms, most of which which are formed by technology (science and technology), or informed by technology (science fiction), or transformed by technology (books and maps).

Today's Trib has a nice obit describing a low-tech geekery that's new to me. Gordon Ray was a civil engineer who was "an expert in concrete road and runway design". He literally wrote the book on it.

"He would talk passionately about concrete paving to anyone at any time, whether it was at a lecture or in a social setting," said George Barney, a senior vice president with the Portland Cement Association. "He was easygoing, but he was very intense in whatever he was focusing on at the time, whether it was concrete pavements or how to sink a putt on the golf course."
..........
"He had all of these pictures of Paris, and his favorite slides were of Charles de Gaulle International Airport," his daughter said. "He was so proud of everything you could do with concrete."

Go read the whole obituary.

Another fine meth: a whine

An annoying law goes into effect in Illinois today. The state will try to combat illegal methamphetamine production by hassling innocent allergy sufferers. The Methamphetamine Precursor Control Act is Illinois' latest move in the ritual panic over the drug du jour. The new law requires retailers to keep products containing pseudoephedrine behind the pharmacy counter. Consumers purchasing them must show ID and sign a log. Additionally, a consumer cannot buy more than 2 packages at once, and no more than 7500 mg per month. I'm sure the law is well-intentioned, but, as the owner of overly-productive sinuses, I don't like it. It will inconvenience me, cost me money, and possibly make me a criminal — all without really affecting the illegal drug trade.

The state already requires pseudoephedrine to be kept behind the counter, which is annoying enough. Signing a log means that now there's more to do, so buying it will take longer. Another gripe is that packages don't come larger than ten days worth, so I can't even get a month's supply at a time.

And it will become more expensive. Over-the-counter drugs with pseudoephedrine have gone up fifteen or twenty percent since last year's round of state restrictions. The new rules will drive costs up and volume down, so prices will ratchet up again.

The new law may turn me into a criminal. I'm allergic to everything, including the nitrogen in the earth's atmosphere. Without allergy drugs, I am a veritable geyser of mucus. With recommended doses, I am still a fountain of snot. It takes more to get my flow down to a reasonable level. The new law will criminalize ordinary behavior by regular allergy sufferers, too. If you pick up medicine for both yourself and a family member, you will probably purchase more than 7500 mg in a month (a month's worth for one person is 7440 mg). The first time you do it, it's a Class A misdemeanor, you criminal. Third time is a Class 4 felony (and you're eligible for the House Republican leadership).

The new law won't do much to reduce illegal meth production. In the short term, it will have the same effect as crackdowns in other drug panics: there may be a brief drop in supply as the as small-timers (like this amazing loser) get forced out, but the big guys will consolidate, and end up bigger than ever. In the long run, they'll find another process to make speed. That's exactly happened when phenylacetone became a controlled substance: crooks started making meth from pseudoephedrine. The next wave in crank manufacture may involve brewer's yeast, which suggests a new selling point: organic meth. (So what if organic meth is nasty, processed, harmful shit that goes against everything the organic movement stands for? So are organic Cheetos.)

There's only one difference between today's meth mania and other drug panics. Previous crackdowns targeted drugs associated with minorities and city folks. Meth tends to be a larger problem in rural areas.

This isn't a complete and utter whine, because I still have something to be grateful for. I'm just glad the authorities haven't restricted every meth ingredient with an innocent use. For example, dihydrogen monoxide (DHMO) is still widely available. DHMO is essential for meth production (and is also used to increase marijuana yields). But DHMO is necessary for legal industry and agriculture, and so — despite the many dangers associated with DHMO — it is pretty easy to get. I take DHMO every day.

We're number one!

Men's Fitness magazine recently named Chicago the fattest city in the country.

I'm doing my part. I'm on the Fatkins diet:
Nestle Crunch + Mr. Goodbar = complete protein.

Does "W" stand for "wasted"?

It's symmetrical: Bush cuts brush; brush cuts Bush.


President Bush is often described as a "dry drunk", an alcoholic who has stopped drinking, but whose mind still travels in ruts eroded by booze. Dry drunk behavior is characterized by

• Grandiose behavior
• Pomposity
• Exaggerated self-importance
• A rigidly judgmental outlook
• Impatience
• Childish behavior
• Irresponsible behavior
• Irrational rationalization
• Projection
• Overreaction

That sounds just like our Fearless Leader, doesn't it?

But at Bottle of Blog, Ricky suggests that Bush isn't so dry. The president recently appeared with yet another facial injury, a cut on his face from clearing brush. Ricky reminisces:

when I was in college, it wasn't unusual for me and my friends to cut and clear so much "brush" that, by the next day, we couldn't even remember where we cut that brush.

Sometimes, we'd wind up, in the early hours of the morning, holding onto a toilet, just vomiting up all the "brush" we had "cut". That's called "clearing" "brush", I guess.

And he points out that

there are only two kinds of grownups in modern American life who show up in public with as many contusions, lacerations, and bruises on their faces on such a regular basis as George W. Bush:

1. Prizefighters; and

2. Falling down drunks.

He makes a case that's all too convincing.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year, everyone.

A minor typographical joy of the new year gets a little less common with each calendrical rollover, a casualty of better education and better access to fancy fonts.

Many businesses, hoping to appear more cosmopolitan —— or simply extending good fellowship to every customer with a spare buck —— festoon their advertising with holiday wishes in many languages. Since Spanish has the second-most speakers in the U.S., there's a lot of "Feliz Año Nuevo" out there. What you see less of now is "Feliz Año Nuevo" rendered without a tilde (~), "Feliz Ano Nuevo", which means "happy new anus."

In related news, astronomers have discovered a faint ring around Uranus.