Since I am continuing to send myself an e-mail trying to sell myself Viagra, and growing increasingly tired of the many implications I decided to do a little checking to see where the link was going. I did this without opening the e-mail’s link. I just hovered the curser over the link and looked at the address listed below. I then entered the address into www.networksolutions.com/whois-search and it came back showing the current registrar as Beijing Innovative Linkage Technology LTD. It also shows the name server as ns1(2,3,4).collig.ru. In other words they are using a Russian domain.
There is some other information and some phone numbers but I am not pursing it any farther. I don’t know whether someone is spoofing them the same way they are spoofing my e-mail address to make it look like I am sending myself these e-mails or what but I don’t like it. If our government was really concerned about our welfare they would be actively reaching out and attacking these people. What they are doing is deliberate and with intended consequences. This is not an accident.
If there are any of you out there that love to hack and disturb but still want to do something for a good cause and stand for something right, here is your target. Take out a spammer. Actively eliminate those that are deliberately out to do harm. I don’t have the wherewithal (resources or knowledge to do it) though I really wish I did.
We have all seen the warning about not clicking on a link from an unknown source or untrusted party and that is good advice. It seems that is still only a portion of the advice you need as I can’t even trust my own e-mail now. Either way please be careful out there. The war that is waging out there is bigger than any of us realize and we are getting caught up in the crossfire, so when in doubt…duck.
This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farr West.
28 December 2010
09 October 2010
Weeds, weeds, weeds. They are everywhere.
I was just out mowing the lawn today and upon completion picked up the bottle of a special weed killer to spray down some particularly difficult weeds.
Now I have known weeds in my life of taking care of yards. My last house was a corner lot that I am convinced managed to grow every type of weed known to mankind. It was a magnet and with each new wind storm a new crop would emerge for which I would ask myself "what is that?" I am not known for my gardening and yard professorship and am still in the learning mode when it comes to identifying which grass is actually the grass that is supposed to be called grass when referring to ones lawn and yard.
I kind of got this idea I took from some yards I've seen that if it is green and you mow it down every now and again that it stills makes for a pretty pleasant yard, but unfortunately friends, family, and spouse have a somewhat different opinion. Also, sadly the last city I lived in had something to say about agricultural creativity. For some reason yards are about something more than just the color green.
Anyway, with all the various weeds that came along (and it seemed as if there was crop rotation with different varieties visiting every third or fourth year) I found that Weed B Gone seemed to take care of everything I saw pretty well. I could mix it and apply it as needed and where needed and it worked out pretty good. It was also much cheaper than having those lawn guys come every few weeks, tell you they sprayed something or other, stick a sign in your yard and charge you a pretty penny each and every time. I figured for the price of one treatment I could do it myself for the whole season and for many years that is exactly what happened.
Well we changed houses. Didn't learn my lesson about corner lots and got another one. The yard was in bad shape when we got here thanks to neglect and a house that sat empty for awhile before we bought it and moved in. Also it was winter and the yard was snow covered so we didn't really know what shape the yard was in, but it was a fairly new house so how bad could it be?
Bad...at least from my wife's point of view. She has used the chem crap people before and ordered up a helping. I think they delivered in a rain storm which washed it all away and doesn't help a thing but they just want to get paid for their delivery and be on their way. After the second helping, which still didn't look as if it was doing any good I convinced my wife that I would take on the job myself. She was worried about this since she knows all too well my less than stellar enthusiasm for lawn care, but even she would have to admit that I have put forth a grand effort in holding up my part of the bargain.
Of course it isn't just mowing...it is trimming, and weed eating, and pruning, and planting, and edging, and weeding some more. This is one of those things in life that you will never reach the end of. Oh you might get to a point where you don't have something immediately pending but add a couple of days and a new task list will develop.
So this year our corner lot that came with secondary water has developed a new infestation of weed that is more obnoxious than any I have encountered in the past. I have fought off morning glory easier than this stuff. And what is worse, I don't even have a name for it.
My wife took a sample down to the local nursery and asked what was needed to get rid of it for which they gave it a name (I can't remember what the name is so don't bother asking) and told her it was really nasty stuff. The best medicine for it was this (insert small white bottle with scientific looking label) that would take care of things with three to four does applied diligently every three weeks.
The label said I could apply about an ounce and a half to every acre or so I think. I tried hard to calculate what that worked out to in equivalent terms for my hand pump sprayer. We where warned to not get to anxious and over apply as it would kill off the grass as well. It is a good thing that we did get to mix it with water though because at $30 an 8 ounce bottle it wasn't going to go very far. Thankfully we only had two patches in the lawn that really had any breakout and mindful of the warning I have tried not to overdo things.
I applied the fourth dose today and I can see evidence that it is working somewhat though I still see signs that it has not gone away completely. I mean this weed is nasty. The roots go deep and the tops run long and intermingle well with the grasses so that even when mowing they stay down and are seldom hit by the twirling blades. I learned quickly to rake the area and bring the weed up to the surface before applying the spray. That seems to have helped but what a pain.
If this doesn't work the next course of action will be to pull each weed individually by hand which will probably further destroy the remaining grass meaning a replanting will be in order and even then I feel there is no guarantee that it won't come back again. This is kind of frustrating but it is what we do when faced with such situations. We fight back as best we can not willing to give any ground to any weed that would destroy our designs for our yard.
At times the weeds seem to want it more. They live on little to no water, they don't require fertilizer, they are overwhelmingly good at propagation, and they resist most all efforts to eradicate them. Why can't grass, and flowers and food bearing plants and trees take a lesson and flourish with as much tenacity as weeds? Why can't we?
I am sure there are some life lessons in there somewhere and because I keep missing them I will continue to have weeds in my life. I did make the analogous connection between weeds in our lives and the crop of bad politicians. You can't just ignore them because they will bring friends and multiply and never be satisfied with the little patch of ground you give them, they will continue to expand until they have consumed all that you have if you let them. It is a never ending job of monitoring and eradicating if you are to keep them out of your life. It requires an eternal vigilance, and if you slip for a time and let them make a foothold then the effort to remove them is greater and sometimes the cost of the medicine is also greater. It may make you question if it is worth it and the only answer to that is, if you want your yard to be the way you want it then you must pay the price.
May the weeds in your life be manageable and may you find that having your yard the way you want it always to be worth the price.
This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farr West.
Now I have known weeds in my life of taking care of yards. My last house was a corner lot that I am convinced managed to grow every type of weed known to mankind. It was a magnet and with each new wind storm a new crop would emerge for which I would ask myself "what is that?" I am not known for my gardening and yard professorship and am still in the learning mode when it comes to identifying which grass is actually the grass that is supposed to be called grass when referring to ones lawn and yard.
I kind of got this idea I took from some yards I've seen that if it is green and you mow it down every now and again that it stills makes for a pretty pleasant yard, but unfortunately friends, family, and spouse have a somewhat different opinion. Also, sadly the last city I lived in had something to say about agricultural creativity. For some reason yards are about something more than just the color green.
Anyway, with all the various weeds that came along (and it seemed as if there was crop rotation with different varieties visiting every third or fourth year) I found that Weed B Gone seemed to take care of everything I saw pretty well. I could mix it and apply it as needed and where needed and it worked out pretty good. It was also much cheaper than having those lawn guys come every few weeks, tell you they sprayed something or other, stick a sign in your yard and charge you a pretty penny each and every time. I figured for the price of one treatment I could do it myself for the whole season and for many years that is exactly what happened.
Well we changed houses. Didn't learn my lesson about corner lots and got another one. The yard was in bad shape when we got here thanks to neglect and a house that sat empty for awhile before we bought it and moved in. Also it was winter and the yard was snow covered so we didn't really know what shape the yard was in, but it was a fairly new house so how bad could it be?
Bad...at least from my wife's point of view. She has used the chem crap people before and ordered up a helping. I think they delivered in a rain storm which washed it all away and doesn't help a thing but they just want to get paid for their delivery and be on their way. After the second helping, which still didn't look as if it was doing any good I convinced my wife that I would take on the job myself. She was worried about this since she knows all too well my less than stellar enthusiasm for lawn care, but even she would have to admit that I have put forth a grand effort in holding up my part of the bargain.
Of course it isn't just mowing...it is trimming, and weed eating, and pruning, and planting, and edging, and weeding some more. This is one of those things in life that you will never reach the end of. Oh you might get to a point where you don't have something immediately pending but add a couple of days and a new task list will develop.
So this year our corner lot that came with secondary water has developed a new infestation of weed that is more obnoxious than any I have encountered in the past. I have fought off morning glory easier than this stuff. And what is worse, I don't even have a name for it.
My wife took a sample down to the local nursery and asked what was needed to get rid of it for which they gave it a name (I can't remember what the name is so don't bother asking) and told her it was really nasty stuff. The best medicine for it was this (insert small white bottle with scientific looking label) that would take care of things with three to four does applied diligently every three weeks.
The label said I could apply about an ounce and a half to every acre or so I think. I tried hard to calculate what that worked out to in equivalent terms for my hand pump sprayer. We where warned to not get to anxious and over apply as it would kill off the grass as well. It is a good thing that we did get to mix it with water though because at $30 an 8 ounce bottle it wasn't going to go very far. Thankfully we only had two patches in the lawn that really had any breakout and mindful of the warning I have tried not to overdo things.
I applied the fourth dose today and I can see evidence that it is working somewhat though I still see signs that it has not gone away completely. I mean this weed is nasty. The roots go deep and the tops run long and intermingle well with the grasses so that even when mowing they stay down and are seldom hit by the twirling blades. I learned quickly to rake the area and bring the weed up to the surface before applying the spray. That seems to have helped but what a pain.
If this doesn't work the next course of action will be to pull each weed individually by hand which will probably further destroy the remaining grass meaning a replanting will be in order and even then I feel there is no guarantee that it won't come back again. This is kind of frustrating but it is what we do when faced with such situations. We fight back as best we can not willing to give any ground to any weed that would destroy our designs for our yard.
At times the weeds seem to want it more. They live on little to no water, they don't require fertilizer, they are overwhelmingly good at propagation, and they resist most all efforts to eradicate them. Why can't grass, and flowers and food bearing plants and trees take a lesson and flourish with as much tenacity as weeds? Why can't we?
I am sure there are some life lessons in there somewhere and because I keep missing them I will continue to have weeds in my life. I did make the analogous connection between weeds in our lives and the crop of bad politicians. You can't just ignore them because they will bring friends and multiply and never be satisfied with the little patch of ground you give them, they will continue to expand until they have consumed all that you have if you let them. It is a never ending job of monitoring and eradicating if you are to keep them out of your life. It requires an eternal vigilance, and if you slip for a time and let them make a foothold then the effort to remove them is greater and sometimes the cost of the medicine is also greater. It may make you question if it is worth it and the only answer to that is, if you want your yard to be the way you want it then you must pay the price.
May the weeds in your life be manageable and may you find that having your yard the way you want it always to be worth the price.
This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farr West.
28 August 2010
Classics and Originals
You have heard me talk about my love for the classics. From literature to film and art to music, the classics have an enduring quality that lets them shine time and time again. It is that certain magic that will bring a smile to your face and a gladness in your heart when you are reacquainted with it some years down the road.
Some things you will see again that you thought were wildly wonderful in your youth and yet when you see them again now you wonder 'What in the world was I thinking'. I am not referring to those type of things.
I am referring of course to fish heads. I grew up on fish heads, and dead puppies and shaving cream and star trekkin' and assorted other looniness that was and is the wonderful world of Dr. Demento.
What brought this up you ask? I came across a disturbing little music video that I have never seen but one whose music I knew every word for. Fish Heads by Barnes and Barnes is a great example of the zaniness of the era. Sorry but I can't seem to get this to link properly so go to youtube and search for it or use this to copy and paste your way there, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTpUVAcvWfU and you will see what I am talking about.
This of course got me linking to other greats from my Demento days and there are quite a few to choose from. There in lies a problem...well maybe not a problem but an observation.
It wasn't long after I discovered that there was such a thing as remakes that I learned about my preference for the originals in most cases. Pat Boone introduced a lot of new music to a whole new audience but it wasn't until they discovered where that music came from that they could really get a handle on it. It is just too hard to recreate the magic without all the original ingredients (as we will find out yet again if they actually try to remake the Three Stooges). This also applies with the placing of things within the context of time. So while you check out the video keep that in mind.
The other reason for mentioning this is to point out that You Tube is made up of many people that have built some very creative videos by using the building blocks of others as the foundation of their work, in other words adding their photos to another person's popular musical number. In most cases they do give credit to the originators and I am glad for that, it is just that when you come across the originals in all their glory, it is just that much more special.
For example, Tom Lehrer in black and white singing his wonderful classic "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" is a gem that you will probably never see redone on American Idol. And can you imagine it being done by anyone else anyway?
So in closing I want to leave you with two choices. A quite little video portrayal of Dead Puppies by GoldnWlf and also a live performance by the original Dead Puppies by Ogden Edsl featuring Bill Frenzer. Ain't the internet grand?
Of course that brings up a whole other topic of which is better, live recordings or studio productions?
This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farr West.
Some things you will see again that you thought were wildly wonderful in your youth and yet when you see them again now you wonder 'What in the world was I thinking'. I am not referring to those type of things.
I am referring of course to fish heads. I grew up on fish heads, and dead puppies and shaving cream and star trekkin' and assorted other looniness that was and is the wonderful world of Dr. Demento.
What brought this up you ask? I came across a disturbing little music video that I have never seen but one whose music I knew every word for. Fish Heads by Barnes and Barnes is a great example of the zaniness of the era. Sorry but I can't seem to get this to link properly so go to youtube and search for it or use this to copy and paste your way there, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTpUVAcvWfU and you will see what I am talking about.
This of course got me linking to other greats from my Demento days and there are quite a few to choose from. There in lies a problem...well maybe not a problem but an observation.
It wasn't long after I discovered that there was such a thing as remakes that I learned about my preference for the originals in most cases. Pat Boone introduced a lot of new music to a whole new audience but it wasn't until they discovered where that music came from that they could really get a handle on it. It is just too hard to recreate the magic without all the original ingredients (as we will find out yet again if they actually try to remake the Three Stooges). This also applies with the placing of things within the context of time. So while you check out the video keep that in mind.
The other reason for mentioning this is to point out that You Tube is made up of many people that have built some very creative videos by using the building blocks of others as the foundation of their work, in other words adding their photos to another person's popular musical number. In most cases they do give credit to the originators and I am glad for that, it is just that when you come across the originals in all their glory, it is just that much more special.
For example, Tom Lehrer in black and white singing his wonderful classic "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park" is a gem that you will probably never see redone on American Idol. And can you imagine it being done by anyone else anyway?
So in closing I want to leave you with two choices. A quite little video portrayal of Dead Puppies by GoldnWlf and also a live performance by the original Dead Puppies by Ogden Edsl featuring Bill Frenzer. Ain't the internet grand?
Of course that brings up a whole other topic of which is better, live recordings or studio productions?
This is Ed Nef with a view from the Farr West.
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