The Daily Parker

I've been a little swamped since getting home, so not until just now, when I have a few minutes to watch a deployment go out, have I had time to go through my Cardiff photos. Why Cardiff? I hear you cry. Well, I'm not ashamed to admit it:

Yes, that's the only place in the world that has the original TARDIS:

It was also a lot of fun to see Roald Dahl Plass; in particular, this:

Points if you know exactly what this is, and why I've included it. Major points.

More UK photos tomorrow.

What does it say that I sent this blog post to Instapaper because I haven't got any time to read it right now?

Sigh. Only a couple more days of this sprint, then things calm down.

Yes, one more entry of nothing but links, as my creativity is completely directed at the three five work projects currently on my agenda. But tomorrow afternoon I start a mini-vacation that will include a good, solid 22 hours of being in planes and trains, which I actually find relaxing. (I am not kidding.)

For now, here's what I'm saving to my Kindle reader:

• The President is having an election-night (victory!) rally at McCormick Place; I will try to attend.
• Newsweek will cease print publication with its December 31st issue, leaving Time the only remaining news weekly in the U.S. This isn't as grave as it sounds; I read the Economist on my tablet now, but it's still great to pick one up overseas and see the differences. Do enough of Newsweek's readers read online now? Is Newsweek still relevant anyway?
• The Cranky Flier reposted his Concorde trip report from 2002, making me jealous. I hope we get supersonic travel back someday. Leaving London at 10:30am and arriving at JFK at 9:15am sounds like a great way to spend a morning. I remember, at Hofstra, most mornings you could watch the Concorde flying overhead on its approach to JFK.
• Target Stores is to break ground at the old Cabrini-Green site today. Here's the place just 18 months ago.
• The rest of my Kindle reading includes such page-turners as Programming ASP.NET MVC 4, Cloud Architecture Patterns, and—no kidding—The Godfather. I suppose I should download The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks as there may be a quiz on Saturday. (Long story.)

Finally, as much as I love crisp, cool autumn weather, I do not like the sun rising after 7. I've learned to turn on a bunch of lights as soon as I get up to fool my diurnal, reptilian brain that it's daytime. And now I must get more caffeine.

A quorum:

• With tonight's debate at my alma mater, Hofstra, everyone needs to hear this again.
• The BBC reports that creativity is linked to mental illness. Or, put differently, people who lack creativity have no other way of explaining it.
• Five Thirty Eight has an interactive graphic showing how state-level politics has shifted since WWII.
• Discover interviews physicist Geoffrey West about urban planning.
• The New Republic thinks Ben Affleck's Argo is brilliant.
• The Economist's Gulliver blog examines Qatar Airlines' accession to oneworld.

All for now.

So far this month, I've worked about 110 hours (no exaggeration), in part preparing for a pair of software demos on Monday. Normal blogging will likely return tomorrow or Monday.

Meanwhile, here's a picture of Parker:

That's from six years ago this week. Everyone together, now: "Awwwwwwww."

My nephew, Conner:

I am officially an uncle.

Good morning, Conner. Welcome to the world. Don't let your last 13 hours turn you off to it. It gets better.

Nick, Jeanine: congratulations, you crazy kids. Let me know when you're ready to have me corrupt him.

I haven't any time to write today, but I did want to call attention to these:

• Parker is fine, though it appears likely he pulled a hind leg muscle on Sunday. He spent much of Sunday crying and really, really hating the stairs; today he was able to stand up and grab a treat from my hand. Tomorrow he'll get a 3 km walk in the morning.
• Alex Brown, my boss, has a new blog entry up.
• The Smithsonian wrote about a CIA burglar who went rogue.
• Reuters' Felix Simon argues against high-frequency trading.
• Andrew Sullivan is freaking out about the President's debate performance. Twice.
• Both Chicago newspapers have endorsed Tammy Duckworth in the 8th district U.S. House race against right-wing nutter Joe Walsh.

Back to the mines...

I just discovered something that should have been obvious: Chicago Public Radio dropped Car Talk too early.

Starting yesterday, WBEZ moved its Saturday schedule around, dropping Car Talk from the 9am slot, bringing Wait Wait! Don't tell me and This American Life forward, and putting new show Snap Judgment in TAL's noon slot. Last week I listened to what I believed at the time to be the last Car Talk episode ever, and found it...oddly routine.

Well, duh. Tom and Ray will continue recording until later this month.

WBEZ: Why, oh why, did you switch the schedule four weeks early? At least there are podcasts.

But wait: it's possible they're not actually going to have a finale. Speculation on the boards is that they're already recycling segments. Say it isn't so, Tom and Ray!

Behold, the Like-a-Hug:

Designed by MIT researchers, the Like-A-Hug coat senses when a Facebook friend "likes" your picture of a sweater-wearing cat or wistful update about finding true love. Then, via some complicated electronic mechanism that's not quite clear, it rewards the wearer by filling with air to mimic a "hugging" sensation.

So basically this is an article of clothing that broadcasts the owner's craven need for approval, as well as suggesting his or her crushing failure to attract hugs from flesh-and-blood beings.

The project team has produced a video, too:

And hey, after last night, who doesn't need a hug?