iPad Musings

April 3, 2010. A day that will go down in geekdom infamy. This is the day that Apple released the long awaited iPad. My husband, known in some circles as Apple fan boy, was among the first purchasers of this nifty toy. He ordered it online and eagerly awaited its arrival via FedEx. This day rivaled Christmas morning as Mr. Oz's level of anticipation and excitement reminded me of young children waking up at 5am to find presents from Santa under the tree.

It is now April 17 and I think he's pretty much been glued to his iPad ever since. I feel a little bit like a woman scorned and have come to understand how significant others must feel when his or her spouse cheats. Perhaps it is less painful when the object of your partner's affection is made of silicone and not flesh and blood? Is an A4 processor better than a heart?


But, what is up with the name? iPad. Clearly there were no women on the development team. It conjures up commercials for feminine care products and sanitary napkins for those heavy data flow days. Surely, there could have been a better name choice out there. Was iTab already taken? Now, I must admit I've gone for test drive on the iPad and it is a fun little gadget. Lately, I've taken on the role of semi-early adopter, so will, undoubtedly, get one at some point. Being the informed consumer that I like to think I am, I did some digging to see what made Mr. Oz fall so head-over-heels, deeply in love. Here is what he said:

Q: What is your favorite thing about the iPad?
It's sheer utility and all the things I can do with it. Versatility. I can surf, read a book, watch a movie, listen to music, play games and I can do all of it instantaneously. The battery lasts all day so I don't have to keep it plugged it. I can be completely untethered. There is really no end to the possibilities.

Q: How is this different than a laptop?
Well, it's lighter -- 1 lb. -- and it's much smaller so I can carry it with me. And, there is a new Macbook that has 10 hours of battery life, but up until the iPad there was really nothing with as long of a battery life for what it can do. Netbooks can't even approach it. And, it's 'touch' so no mouse needed.

Q: Any concerns in being one of the first purchasers?
When I read the reviews, they were all glowing. That reassured me. Any concerns I had with being a beta-tester, went away completely on day 1. It blew me away. I didn't have any lag or crashes. It was great.

Q: What do you wish the iPad did that it doesn't currently offer?
I wish it used flash because a lot of sites use flash. The iPad doesn't display flash. I believe Steve Jobs has a problem with how flash uses processor power and burns the battery down. It doesn't work well with the iPad software. Probably even more so, I wish that sites, in general, didn't rely on flash so much.

A card reader slot would also be a nice add.

Q: Favorite apps?
The Kindle app is probably my favorite. Shout out to the Amazon.com folks. I can read a book on my Kindle, my iPhone and now my iPad and if I sync my devices, they will bookmark where I left off and I can pick it back up at the same point on any of these. Sketchbook Pro is also a fun one. It's cool to have a sketch pad at my fingertips. It has a lot of options.

Q: What advice do you have for anyone interested in getting an iPad?
Get one!

There you have it. Mr. Oz on his new favorite "gal."

I'm jealous of hardware and software. Have I officially entered the new millenia? Is this a sign of an impending apocolypse? Steve Jobs, what will you have for us next? I'm too scared to even think about it.

Fundamentally, We Are Different

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about the seemingly arbitrary rules that we have as a society and why these rules came about. One such "rule" is the 5-day work week. Who devised this little gem? When was it decided that a typical week should consist of five days of work and then 2 days of rest? Without doing a lick of research to delve into this further, I would hypothesize that some business owner or industry captain made this one up. Or, better yet, the robber baron, capitalist autocrat tyrant -- let's call him Mr. Moneybags -- really wanted his employees to work 24/7. He devised the first, second and third shifts as well. More than likely, Mr. Moneybags was also the one who came up with child labor AND unfair labor practices. It was only when some group of organized workers (or other justice wielding entity) picketed and demanded some rights that the work week shrunk from 7 days to 5 days. That was as far as Mr. Moneybags was going to go. Enough was enough.

So, now we are years beyond the scuttlebutt between Mr. Moneybags and his pesky striking workers. How far have we gotten in this amount of time? We still have the arbitrary five day work week. Why? You'd think in this day and age we would have moved beyond the simple structure of punching the clock. I suppose in some small ways we have evolved . . . ever slightly. I know there are books on this out there -- "The 4 Day Work Week" being one of these. I really like the concept of working a day less each week. What if we all rose up and demanded such a thing? What if the 4 day work week became the norm, the new standard? It only seems fair that we balance out the amount of time spent working with the amount of time we spend resting and playing.

This thought somehow made me think of the role of government in our lives. I made some comment on Facebook that we should petition our congressman to help legislate the 4 day work week. Although I was merely jesting, one of my friends replied that this was just one more thing we would rely on the government to fix for us. I have been pondering this thought ever since. And this, dear blog readers, is what I came up with: perhaps the fundamental difference between those who take a more liberal bent to politics -- call them democrats if you will -- and those who are more conservative (i.e. republicans), is not the disagreements about pro-life or pro-choice nor is it about raising taxes, spending on social programs or even public health care. Nope. At the core, the difference is this: those who take a more liberal stance do so because in their heart of hearts they hold a certain pessimism toward humanity and our ability to care for one another as we should. Left to our own devices, liberals believe we wouldn't necessarily fulfill our duty of helping one another out. Conservatives, on the other hand, seem to believe that, if left to our own devices, things would be o.k. Survival of the fittest if you will . . . let the marketplace dictate how/when we act, let private industry adjust itself to supply and demand. I trully think this is the core philosophical difference between the right and the left. When you look at it from both sides, there is some merit and truth to both views. Both are essentially flawed but well intentioned. One wants to see the best in humanity realized but doesn't think we can do it alone. The other wants to be left alone and hopes humanity can rise to the occasion and demonstrate it's best.

I believe that, in its ideal, the government is there to protect and care for its people. They are the watchdog to make sure that we all have the right to pursue our own happiness. And, perhaps more importantly, I believe that we as humans often lose sight of this when we are caught up in elements of power and financial gain. Sometimes, the government needs to step in and right the wrongs. Now this doesn't mean that they should meddle in every single thing. We don't have to have a law for everything and I'm certainly not advocating laws of morality or value-based legislation. No. Instead, I'm thinking about Mr. Moneybags and how he is all about making more money to fill his bags. He wouldn't want to jeopardize his future profits by, oh I don't know, putting in proper ventilation or heating in his factories so his workers can breathe clean air and not freeze to death. He also wouldn't want to put more costly safety measures into practice or give people an hour for lunch or time off when their kids are sick. Let's see . . . what else wouldn't Mr. Moneybags want to do?

I think the recent Wall Street failures and economic struggles have shown us that when government stops regulating our human compulsions toward greed and power, really REALLY bad things can happen. We can't fight our own human frailties. Perhaps the best we can do is try to curtail them by putting checks and controls in place for ourselves.

Government is far from perfect. FAR from perfect. Afterall, politicians are human too. But, wouldn't a 4 day work week make us all just a little bit happier? Maybe that is the cure all to everything . . . work less, play more.

Dear Oprah....

Dear Oprah,

This is Abysmal. I know that I haven't always been good to you. I know that in the past I said some terrible things, like how I was going to sue your magazine for plagerism and how I thought that you can't possibly "know anything for sure" - I know...I know...I have been critical. And I'm SORRY that I work too late and don't have time to watch every episode.....

But....

But....

I buy your magazine. I have even purchased items from your sponsors...from the "O" recommendations.....I have gone so far as to read books that you have told me to read.....I am a closet fan. And let's face it, you are a GAHZILLIONAIRE.

So. I need you to know. My Ipod has died. It has DIED, Oprah! I cannot lose weight without it. Could you contact your angel network or whoever else you have control over...like maybe even Bill Gates... and get me a new one?

Love, Abysmal.

P.S. Don't make me go to Ellen with this issue.

Google This

Decided to google my blog name tonight. That's My Best just happens to be the second hit when typed up as all one word with no punctuation. As I perused some of the other options, I found an interesting site filled with cartoons. Some of them were clever so thought I'd share.

This one reminded me of a post documenting Ozy's strange fascination with the litter box. Now I know why he is so enthralled. It gives him power! Couldn't agree more with this one. Seems, these days, we really have very little choice within our democratic system. We can choose lame option #1 or lamer option #2. The two party approach, despite all the vitriol and venom, pundits and pandering, masks a harsher reality of sameness, monotony and no true change. I, for one, was hoping for a change I could believe in, some big shake-ups and new thinking. Where is it? Although I believe the healthcare reform bill is a step in the right direction, it certainly didn't go far enough in curtailing the insurance companies greedy practices and leveling the playing field for everyone. When will we learn that capitalism and political power don't necessarily equate to justice, liberty and human kindness? Do we conform or cry out in muted protest? Sad. Sad. Sad.

And, on a completely unrelated note, Ozy turns 1 tomorrow. I probably need to get him a doggy cake, no? Happy Birthday cuddle pup!

Welcome to the Zombie Den

Medical update: Just finished my full course of antibiotics and things are looking up. My congestion, wheezing and general malaise have all calmed down and now I only sound moderately like a cat purring when I breathe. While I'm not ready to claim full victory over pneumonia, I feel as if I've turned the corner and got this infection on the run. Let's hope my re-visit next week confirms my amateur prognosis. I figure who needs years and years of medical school when you have watched as many House episodes as I have, right? Love that show. Love Hugh Laurie, but I digress.

When one is faced with the prospect of battling illness, the most immediate and logical step to take is celebration with cocktails and zombies -- not necessarily in that exact order. The best place, and perhaps only place, in Minnesota for said festivities is Donny Dirks Zombie Den in NE Mpls. This place used to be Stand Up Franks. No chairs or stools. People stood and drank their stiff drinks and they liked 'em that way, dammit. In the past year, the joint has been transformed into a hipster style palace to all things undead. The walls are covered in a smoky glass tile with the occasional zombie head sticking out for artistic effect. The dark scene stands punctuated with animal print carpet, flashy chandeliers and televisions playing re-runs of old (and not so old) zombie flicks. 28 Weeks Later happened to be on when we were there. The drink menu boasts such lovelies as The Dark and Stormy, a fine looking rum concoction, and the Voodoo Zombie. What is a Voodoo Zombie, you might ask? Well, according to our server "it is really a typical voodoo drink." What that means, I'm not really sure. It does have a lot of booze and an assortment of random fruit juices so I guess that is what voodoo drinks are all about.

It's a pretty cool place if you like to stare at zombie faces whilst you sip your libations. Who doesn't?

For a slightly different vibe, I would recommend La Belle Vie lounge or LBVL as the cool kids like to call it. I met my good friends Poodle and ALO there for an after work cocktail and man was it terrific. It feels very posh -- like upper West Side Manhattan townhome with a doorman kinda sophisticated. I was immediately taken with the interior and then I took a look at the drink menu. Their ubber mixologist, Johnny, laid down some delightful concoctions. My first was the Tangerine Sidecar. Yummy. Then I put myself in the capable hands of Johnny and asked for his recommendation. He poured up something called the Ides of Spring (I think that is what it was called) all mystifyingly good with some citrus and fresh ginger. Johnny, you had me at sidecar. If you are interested in reading more, check out this blog documenting the taste-by-taste trip through the LBVL drink menu. Funny!

I will certainly be visiting La Bell Vie again soon. It ranks as one of My Bests to be sure.

So, there you have it. My adventures in liquor are in no way an indication of a problem. I don't NEED to drink, I choose to drink. It's all medicinal really. Whatever the marvels of modern pharmacology don't kill, the bourbon and vodka, vermouth, cava and bitters are sure to take care of. That which does not kill me, only makes me stronger.