I Hate Phone Books

August 20, 2008 - 3pm

This is a great idea. It’s a service that allows you to opt out of receiving telephone books. I’ve gotten three or four unnecessary, unwanted, unsolicited phone books in the last year. I walked all but the last straight of them to the recycling bin behind my house without ever taking them into my apartment. (I was in a bad mood when the last one showed up, so I just hurled it on the sidewalk and left it there.)

Here are a few facts that I think phone book printers ought to be aware of:

  • There’s this new thing called the “Internet” that’s updated more than once a year.
  • The majority of the people I know only own cell phones, so they wouldn’t be in a phone book even if I didn’t already have them in my contact list.
  • If someone is under 40 years old, it will never even cross his or her mind to look in a book for a phone number or address.  That’s what the Internet is for.
  • I consider phone books to be a step down from litter.  At least with litter, no one paid money to compile, print, and deliver it before I throw it away.  Phone book manufacturers, on the other hand, killed a few dozen trees in order to leave me their trash.  Way to go.

There’s no national “Stop Leaving Your Garbage On My Doorstep” list, so it’s voluntary for the phonebook manufacturers to comply with the request.  I’m hoping it works.

Mediocre Lake Pictures

August 15, 2008 - 4pm

A few weeks ago, I walked down to the Monona Terrace with the intention of attending a noon Tai Chi class.  I waited around for a few minutes before and after noon, saw absolutely no one looking Tai Chi-ish, gave up and left.  I still had some time to kill, so I went walking around taking pictures with my phone.  I didn’t think I’d get anything good, and I was right.

I did find one interesting thing, though: a red-tailed hawk let me get within about ten feet of it.  I was tempted to go closer, but decided kept my (relative) distance due to its flesh-tearing talons and ability to tear out my eyes.

Pics are up in the gallery here. Have at ‘em, and let me know in the comments if you think any of them are decent.

Goddammit, NBC.

August 8, 2008 - 10pm

I could give a tenth of a fuck about the Olympics. I was happy that the opening ceremony took place today, because that meant they’re that much closer to being done. I really want to stop reading and hearing about them in the news, and they can’t go away soon enough.

There is exactly one Olympic event that I would watch: Tae Kwon Do. Those guys are amazing. I might even be able to pick up a combo or two watching them. NBC isn’t televising any of the competition. Apparently, watching men and women with insane levels of skill fight using razor-sharp reflexes isn’t interesting enough to warrant air time.

You know what is being televised?

  • Handball
  • Badminton
  • Water Polo
  • Canoeing
  • Field Hockey
  • Table Tennis

Are they serious? Handball? Water Polo? Fucking Ping Pong? I didn’t even know that any of these were Olympic events, much less that anyone would be willing to watch them on TV.

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© Marc Teale 2008.