Oy.
Yes, the dog ate my cell phone case. I really, really want to skip ahead to his second birthday now...
I'm David Braverman, this is my blog, and Parker is my 8-month-old mutt.
Here are the main topics on the Daily Parker:
- Parker, my dog, whom I adopted on September 1st.
- Biking. I ride my bikes a lot. Last year I prepared for two Century rides but, alas, my gallbladder decided to explode a week before the first one. I might not have a lot to say until later in the spring, but I have big plans in 2007.
- Jokes. All right, I admit: when I'm strapped for ideas, sometimes I just post a dumb joke.
- Politics. I'm a moderate-leftie by International standards, which makes me a radical left-winger in today's United States. Less than 701 days remain in the worst presidential administration in history, so I have plenty to write about.
- Software. I own a small software company in Evanston, Illinois, and I have some experience writing software. I see a lot of code, and since I often get called in to projects in crisis, I see a lot of bad code. Posts in this blog about software will likely be cross-posted from the blog I'm about to start, Inner Drive Software.
- The weather. I've operated a weather website for more than seven years. That site deals with raw data and objective observations. Many weather posts also touch politics, given the political implications of addressing climate change under a President who's beholden to the oil industry.
This is public writing, too, so I hope to continue a standard of literacy (i.e., spelling, grammar, and diction) and fluidity of prose that makes you want to keep reading.
So thanks for reading, and I hope you continue to enjoy the blog.
It seems the weather forecast was correct: The 10 am (1600 UTC) temperature at O'Hare was 2°C, the first time it's been above freezing in Chicago since January 27th, and only the third time since January 15th.
I'm going to go outside and bask in the warmth right now...
I may have had my fill of snow, but Parker hasn't:
The consensus at the play group yesterday evening was that the warmer weather will turn the park into a mud pit, which the dogs will love almost as much. It's still not April, I guess.
There is one aspect of the snow that Parker won't miss, I think:
Poor guy.
It's possible that the temperature in Chicago could go above freezing this afternoon for the first time since January 27th. This is the longest stretch of below-freezing weather we've had since I returned home in 2000. Hey, I like records as well as the next athlete, but I'm pretty tired of this one.
Stay tuned.
I don't know what Parker was saying to Dexter, but it does look like Dexter is taking the kid under his wing, so to speak:
Also, I'd like to point out that neither of them cared about the -26°C wind chill, but Dexter's dad and I sure did. Pretty sunrise, though:
The ParkerCam is back, and this time, it's personal.
Parker is at home today, but I've decided to give up a little of my own privacy so that he can continue to be famous:
This also lets you, gentle reader, play "where's Parker?" all day. Is he by the door, hidden from view off to the left? Looking out the window? Or just lying on his back with his paws straight up in the air? Around 1pm, you might even get a glimpse of the dog-walking service.
Update: Apparently the upload can be a bit slow, so sometimes the image won't be there when you hit Refresh. I'll try to fix that tonight.
Did anyone else remember that a year ago today (Feb. 13 in the U.S.), Dick Cheney shot someone? How time flies...
So I'm walking home at 8:15 pm, and I hear Civil Defense sirens. I'm just old enough to find the sound chilling. When I was a kid, CD sirens meant "tornado" or "Soviet missile attack." They sounded for about two full minutes, which I thought was gratuitious.
See, Evanston, Ill., sounded their CD sirens tonight to tell everyone to move their cars, just in case people missed the 20 cm of snow on the ground (parking restrictions take effect after 5 cm of snow).
I also found out, this storm has dropped more snow on Chicago than any other since I returned here in March 2000. As I walked home in my long underwear, thich Irish sweater, ski gloves, fleece scarf, snow boots, and heavy jacket, I thought, "you know, it's not so bad..." Not to mention, Parker is having a grand old time, though it did pain me to see him try to do his business with snow all the way to his chin.
This weather builds character, after all.
Late update: The Chicago Tribune has picked up the story.
So I'm in my office, working on stuff, when all of a sudden my speakers go haywire, then dead. Yup: Parker bit right through the speaker wire, destroying the best computer speakers I've ever had, which were about $150 back in 1998.
Destructo-beast from Hell, that's what he is.