I can't believe it. I forgot my tie! This happens two or three times a year.
In the past I've borrowed from Noah Finz. Today it was Dr. Mel as I realized what was going on. He said yes.
Would anyone have noticed? "Look! Channel 8's weather people all have similar ties."
If you like tonight's tie you now know who to compliment.
I need to store ties at work!
]]>I created a flying animation to show where the danger was and labeled it as we normally do with a 2-line banner.
DAMN FAILURE SYLVIA'S POND DAM
I came within around 90 seconds of not noticing and putting that faux pas on-the-air!
Phew--no YouTube tonight!
]]>There is a reason for the nutsy weather, but it's a reason not revealed to mere man. The underlying causes that drive the weather to do what it does are often hidden beneath a layer of atmospheric noise.
We're not done. More rain overnight and tomorrow.
]]>The first tipoff was computer's inability to update the AVG signature files. That's a trick today's smart viruses frequently use. I just did some minor surgery to the registry, rebooted and voila--updates are working.
I really don't know how much more infection is there. Undoubtedly just removing a file doesn't fix everything.
As is nearly always the case this virus came while antivirus software was present! I don't blame Helaine but it's nearly certain she clicked on something that looked OK but wasn't. It happens. Social engineering is a huge part of virus propagation.
If things still aren't 100% up-to-speed I'll backup her data, reformat and reload. Life goes on.
]]>The bad economy is one reason jobs have left--but it's not the only reason. There just aren't as many reasons to employ people when you can get machines or even the customer himself to do the work for you.
Look at all the jobs that used to exist but no longer do. There are the obvious customer service agents replaced by voice prompts and recognition. Checkouts at the supermarket and hardware store now self serve. The gas station too. Monday, my co-worker Ann Nyberg showed me a photo of a 'helpless' Dunkin' Donuts inside a grocery store.
No one wants employees if they can avoid them us. We are a pain in the ass. We are expensive, temperamental and prone to break down. We form unions. We kvetch. We need to be managed.
Businesses like Google where the cashflow overwhelms the staffing requirements are the goal.
When was the last time you heard an entrepreneur with a business model that was labor intensive? It's been a long time.
What was a department store is now Wal*Mart, Target or BJs. There's a fraction of the staff. And we're only seeing the front of the store. Every economy of scale is a reason for fewer people.
The 20th Century might have been the century of the employee, a time when the worker did well. The 20th Century, it can be argued, was the worker's shining moment.
Not so the 21st! Our notions about hard work and a good life have disconnected.
In the past as labor saving devices came on line workers and their bosses benefited. Now only companies benefit from increased productivity. And, the job market is so unbalanced there is no leverage for most workers. It's tough to see the playing field evened for a long time to come.
]]>The quote is from Helaine. She said it as I was scrambling to leave the house and drive to work. She was referring to today's Dallas, TX police chase.
"There should be a channel with only this," she added.
They are addictive even though they're entirely predictable. Attention miscreants: If you hear a copter overhead, pull over. You're done.
I knew what Helaine was talking about because the chase was on the TV in the bedroom as I got dressed. MSNBC's anchors were quizzing a Texas police dispatcher. They seemed more interested than he was.
It was a "routine traffic stop," the dispatcher said. In some quarters those words are considered cover for police as they hassle minorities. In any event the driver took off and led police across the Dallas area for a few hours before running through an intersection and getting slammed by a pickup truck.
Don't hold your breath waiting for a follow-up. When the perp was caught the story ended.
Why is this stuff covered? People watch--that's the easy answer.
Is it news? That's a tougher question. MSNBC and others were following it without knowing any off the underlying factors. They were not following a crime or criminal as much as they were following a chase.
In the past I've referred to this as soft core porn for newsrooms. My opinion hasn't changed.
]]>She spent a few weeks splitting her time between the sofa and bed. Those days are over--she's working.
Stef has discovered she's not in college anymore! She really is working. It's not a question of difficulty of task--it's just the commitment of those same hours every day plus her substantial commute. That she really enjoys her job and the people she's working with makes it easier--but it's still work.
It's nice having her home. Should I say that? Am I cursing our relationship by claiming short term family unity?
She has, dare I say, matured. No--she doesn't think like a 58 year old. More importantly she doesn't think like a kid!
There's a lot to like about Stef. My favorite part is how she speaks and what she says. I have always been verbally judgmental. I'm the wrong guy to axe a question! Don't use "orientated" either! She's fast and funny.
When Stef was an infant I was doing some work in her bedroom. As she watched from her crib I smashed my thumb with a hammer. "Damn," I screamed. Immediately Stef followed with, "Damn, damn, damn, damn."
Nothing's changed in that respect. A few weeks ago she said a colorfully profane invective. "Never say that in my presence again," I said. It's not the word. It's the word from my child!
However, like damn, when there's a chance to use this word for effect there it is! It's her way to silence me, but when she uses it it's funny not disrespectful. That's a level of linguistic nuance not normally found at her age.
Friday we go to get her dog, Roxie. As with work, being responsible for a little puppy will change Stef. Hopefully she'll continue to change for the better.
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As we sat on the couch yesterday afternoon Helaine said, "I'm surprised you haven't written about Michael Jackson. I checked a few times looking for it. Don't you remember sitting on that ugly couch in Buffalo watching Thriller?"
I do. It was quite an event. The world gravitated to MTV on December 2, 1983 when the video was premiered. There was as much hype and hoopla as I can remember surrounding a cultural/musical happening. It didn't disappoint.
This was Michael Jackson's second pop career. His first was as the front man for the Jackson 5.
When the J5 was at its peak they were being marketed in a way that made them seem unhip to me. It's only now I appreciate songs like "I Want You Back¹."
When I speak to people who've only seen Michael as a grotesquely reconfigured weirdo, I point out that he was genuinely cute pre-surgery. It's tough to believe.
I'm not a psychiatrist, but I still have my theories on what made Michael Jackson the truly strange person he grew up to be. I don't doubt he enjoyed the time he spent performing. Unfortunately, that time is surrounded by more dedicated time. As a child his life was full of adult responsibility and discipline.
Look who he's friendly and linked to--other grown child stars. They're the only people who might have a true understanding of his childhood... or lack thereof.
On top of that, imagine a life where money is truly no object. Martin Mull tells a joke about the saddest thing in the world--high school with money. Michael Jackson was that on steroids!
It's all really sad. I don't feel especially bad for the family whose motives have always seemed a little sinister to me. I do feel bad for Michael who never had the ease of life that his level of fame is supposed to provide.
Last night I decided to look and listen to some of Michael's stuff. That took me to youtube.com where loads of performances can be seen. Actually, there's more! I have no idea where it came from, but within youtube are the original Motown tracks for some of the Jackson 5 songs minus the lead vocal. It looks like these were mastered to allow Michael to appear on TV or in person actually singing, but without the expense of the sending a full orchestra (actually the Funk Brothers) and the rest of the family. It's amazing stuff to hear.
As we change from the vinyl to digital era and radio fades from its glory there may never be another artist capable of aggregating the outlandishly huge fan base Michael got. Mass media is become narrow media which doesn't play into this kind of over-the-top fame.
Saturday afternoon word came the physician in Michael's house when he died has 'lawyered up.' People will go to jail for this tragic death.
¹ - The piano glissando in "I Want You Back" has reached iconic status.
]]>It's quieter now.
I was going to write something about Michael Jackson--and probably will tomorrow. Right now I'm trying to ramp myself down.
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For the past few days I've been torn as to whether there should be an Ed McMahon entry in the blog. Though a huge presence on television he struck me as a man with little personal integrity. He sold what can politely be called "crap" on the Atlantic City Boardwalk and never really changed. Seemingly he'd shill any product.
His moral code aside, where he was really excellent was as Johnny Carson's announcer/sidekick. Howard Lapides coined the term we liberally sprinkled Ed's way. It was "FL" for fake laugh. If Carson intended something to be funny then it was funny to Ed! His laugh was loud and recognizable.
Don't underestimate this power. The Tonight Show was 'sweetened' in real time by Ed. No post-production house could add a laugh track that would help as much.
I have one Ed McMahon story and it involves my very secretive friend from the San Fernando Valley and his spectacularly beautiful wife. I asked if he could get me tickets to see The Tonight Show and he asked her. She had been a page at NBC. She'd even appeared on The Tonight Show giving Johnny the prize envelopes on Stump The Band!
Her specialty was making sure you'd be seated "DIF" or "down-in-front." That's where I sat. Thank you Sue.
There are few places I've been that immediately seemed so eerily familiar--Mission Control in Houston and the big digital clock at the shuttle launch facility in Florida, CNN's newsroom, the floor of the NYSE and Carson's studio on West Alameda in Burbank. I'd seen it a thousand times before I ever set a foot inside.
The crowd entered and politely sat. We were excited. As taping time approached the band played a number and Ed came out to warm everyone up.
"There seems to have been a mistake--a clerical error," he said.
The audience sighed worrying what was wrong and how it would affect our best laid plans.
"I don't know how," he continued, "but Johnny, Doc and I have been scheduled to work on the same night!"
The audience went nuts!
I remember that moment as if it was yesterday--in fact it is the only part of my Tonight Show experience I remember.
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It is quiet tonight in the Fox house. Helaine and Stef are asleep. I am alone in my office, lit by a single lamp. It's 64° outside so the window's open.
If you're really still the sound of intermittent rain falling from leaves can be heard. It's tough to say whether it's actually raining or if this is residual moisture from earlier showers. It doesn't matter. To be outside is to be enveloped by the moisture that saturates the atmosphere... and now too the ground.
This is an all weather area. Little that comes from the sky can't be handled on the ground. In nearly 20 years I've never seen our nearby brook do much more than get angry and stray a few feet. It looks pretty when it's wet.
I never know how to describe this area. We more rural that suburban, though we're not rural. The homes are spread out here, more because of well water and septic systems than anything else. You need room to produce and process water!
This is probably the first house built on this land. A stone wall in my backyard marks some old property line. Walls were always built in the open, but it's now hemmed in by mature trees. It's been a long time since anyone tried to grow anything on this rock infused New England soil.
I am being driven crazy by the current weather scenario. Not because of what it is, but because of how difficult impossible it is to forecast beyond 60 hours! I know a lot of people think 8-days is too far ahead to forecast, but there is some utility--especially the long range temperatures. Now three days has me flummoxed.
The computer models are fine tuned on actual weather, so when something really unusual takes place they have trouble following what's going on. Obviously, this pattern is exceptionally unusual.
The 12Z GFS (a computer model run at 8:00AM or 12Z) showed a cutoff low in the Northern Plains for next week which basically stood still for days at a time. Could it happen? Sure, but it would be the first I've ever seen in 25 years here! And, of course, everything else in the model is closely related to this large feature. If it's wrong (and it most likely is) everything else is wrong.
"Discard it," you say. "If it's wrong just ditch it."
The problem is going beyond a few days humans aren't capable of producing a reliable forecast without this high level mathematical help. We may know it's wrong, but we don't know what is right and there are a variety of possible solutions.
If it was just a question of working harder to get the forecast right I would. In the meantime I grin and bear it trying not to mislead those who trust me.
]]>In order to wash out virtually all of June and cancel spring (which is what happened) a series of unlikely events needed to line up. The longer this gloom lasts the more statistically impressive that series becomes. This is the meteorological equivalent of standing at a craps table and throwing nothing but 2s, 3s and 12s.
For the past few days Friday has looked like the point the pattern changes. A consistent presentation by the computer models is usually a good sign the forecast will be correct.
I can't imagine the toll this weather has taken on businesses and mental health. Make no mistake--there has been a toll.
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