Next time you’re shopping for a new smart phone and the salesperson at the counter tries to sell you brand X... ask them to pull their own phone out and show you what they use every day.

When I was doing a little Christmas shopping this weekend I couldn’t help but giggle when I saw the Google “Android Specialist” checking his e-mail on a Blackberry.

In retrospect I should have stopped and quizzed him. Perhaps I’ll go back this weekend to throw stones at him and brand him an heretic.

Up & Up is Target’s new generic brand. I find, however, I can’t stop looking at the logo upside down as Down & Down.

Does that make me a pessimist?

What are the odds this Mini driver is a PM who attends a lot of loosely scheduled meetings?

... because this may take a while.

When Paula and I were back in California for her graduation we had a really good time seeing the old, familiar sites and an especially good time hanging out with friends.

I've gotten pretty good at taking self portraits with just Paula and me... but I have yet to master taking self portraits with more people.  I do, actually, kind of like this goof when I tried to take a picture of Dick, Trina and myself and I could help but add a little something extra...

I suppose I really need to get the rest of the pictures up, don't I? 

My mind is just way too literal sometimes...

Leaving the house this AM I saw a smoking truck parked across the street, but the smoke wasn't what drew my attention, it was the sound.  The small delivery van was idling fast and didn't sound the least bit healthy.  The van had smoking coming out the tailpipe, but not much worse than you'd expect from a diesel.  It didn't, however, look or sound like it was going to make it very far at all. 

Here's what made stand and stare: The driver got out, walked around back and looked at the smoking tailpipe.  Satisfied it was okay he left van running, locked it and walked off.  Here's the thing... it sounded like the accelerator was stuck half-way down (at least), it was smoking badly and the guy just locks the van and goes (presumably) to find help... with the van still running!  It wasn't the brightest move.  The van continued to run at high idle... smoking more and more.  It got to the point that it looked like a James Bond smokescreen and cars had to stop for fear of driving through the dense cloud and hitting something. 

The driver was gone for several minutes before there was a bang and smoke started coming out from under the hood as well as from the tailpipe.  When he came hurrying back with someone in tow and the driver decided it would now be a good time to turn off the truck.  Genius.

Pop quiz hot shot: turn off the van or leave it running and walk away?

... but I suppose some parents may need the extra cleaning power of the "scrape it clean" for their child changing.

Overseen in the baby products aisle at our local super store.

I was going to the Developer One web site to download an update and I noticed this snowman on their page… is it flipping me off?

I feel sorry for the US postal worker who has to hike up the hill to this house... in Salzburg Austria.

Do you think they publish fortnightly or monthly?

But clown vans are even more scary.

Click for larger view... IF YOU DARE (dum dum DUM!).

Pictures we took at Ground Zero when we visited in December of 2001.

More on SmugMug.

Bug Bash started life as an internal MS comic strip by cartoonist and program manager, Hans Bjordahl.  It has a ton of great commentary on the software development process and has also been available outside MS for a while now.  My favorite series of strips is a set of "Meeting Busters - Surefire ways to sink your meeting".  Within that series, there is this beautiful cell: 

Some more back story: when we lived in Colorado my wife (well... girlfriend at the time) and I loved Hans Bjordahl's comics in the University of Colorado school paper (I wasn't going to college there, Paula was).  When I started work for Microsoft I noticed the "Bug Bash" comic in our internal newspaper had the same character style (which led me to dig up the old clippings I had... and lo!).  When Hans left Microsoft this year I worried we'd loose the regular dose of laughing at the software development industry but Hans has continued to write and publish Bug Bash (this was the only sentence without a parenthetical).

I was reminded of it this morning when I came across a CNet article (from February) on how the Internet is changing the business of cartoonists.  Tag line:

"See you in the funny pages" takes on a new meaning for cartoon artists who are making a home on the Web.

Here are direct links to the Meeting Busters strips:

• Meeting Busters
• More Meeting Busters
• Yet More Meeting Busters

Fire extinguishers...

... housed in an old fireplace.

This is a real cup holder.

IMAGE_073.jpg

Aparently Buick felt the target audience of their rendezvous would be driving around drinking bottles of wine.

Rob shows off his son's dancing chops.  Not bad for four months old.

We were at the wedding of our friend Leo and I noticed this signage at the entrance to the wedding hall.

signs.jpg

signs2.jpg

How do they do it?

IMAGE_062.jpg

I suppose this helps explain why I feel guilty after eating a Big Mac.

LPH_7746.JPG

Picture courtesy of Phillip Holmes of Shane Griffin images.

This is the top shelf of our fridge ...

IMAGE_059.jpg

... and we don't even drink beer.

IMAGE_0281.jpg

A close up of the bug taken by the company that did the vinyl wrap.

It's eye catching... but, still, would you hire them?

IMAGE_022.jpg

I've been going to town uploading pictures to our smugmug site... and I came across this:

The for sale portion amused me... but I forgot to post the picture.  Better late than never.  Good thing that sudden ice age didn't hit.

I say Ketchup, you say Catsup, let's call the whole thing off.

But wait... something new on the horizon?  Here's just the thing for people looking for that special condiment to set off their latest culinary creation:

Click for big

Yummy, banana ketchup.  Now public schools can ensure our under-fed youth get their requisite serving of both fruits and vegetables simply by dousing cafeteria french fries with this compound condiment.

...does "Virgin Water" really sound appealing?

Perhaps it just needs a catchy slogan:
   Virgin H₂0: Fresh squeezed from the world's finest virgins.
   Virgin H₂0: Like holy water, only better.
   Virgin H₂0: Now in plastic containers... because no one wants their Virgin Water to break.

We took a ferry when we were on vacation last week...

It had an impressive steel door to the bridge...

... and an impressive security sign...

... and an impressive slide lock...

... on the non-secure side.

I guess if you're dumb enough to try to hijack this ferry you'll likely be stymied by this marvel of modern security.

Sunscreen on the arms? Check.
Sunscreen on the face? Check.
Sunscreen on that thinning spot on the top of the head?  Check.

Sunscreen on the tops of the feet?  CRAP!

Aditya and Omar only made it 10ft from the conference room before they felt the need to start working again... they worked a bit then walked the next 10ft to their offices.

No, I don't know how Aditya keeps the laptop there... I suspect the legs of his jeans are covered with rosin.

I was at a special Microsoft campus recently and had the distinct privilege of being allowed into the top secret research wing.  The most interesting work being done at this facility is Microsoft Research's ultra-secret experimentation with worm holes.

If anyone asks, you didn’t hear it from me.

The building name has been blurred out, of course, for security reasons (click for larger version).

Ice Cube... and... A Ditty.

Took this picture a few months ago when The Day After Tomorrow was going to start playing in theaters in the coming weekend (phew).

Click for big

I made Mike back up so I could see this again...

This, um... "enthusiastic" fellow was seen sitting in the front window of Jamba Juice in Downtown Disney:

 Click for big

... and especially if you've been drinking, this kind of thing is really funny.

 Clicky for biggie

Perhaps they really know their customers.