It probably qualifies more as children's literature, but I remember my dad reading "Taffy of Torpedo Junction" to us when we were kids. It was extra special since it took place in our home state of NC (which was hard to come by, kid-novel wise), and spins a pretty good yarn involving the various U-Boat raids on the Outer Banks during WWII.

"A Death In The Family", by James Agee, takes place in Knoxville, TN against the backdrop of WWI, and is a great... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 12:53 PM on July 21, 2008

When Adobe first launched this kind of thing in Photoshop it was called the "navigator", and still is. It seems like it could be called a proxy also, since it is in essence a "proxy" of the larger detail view.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 1:23 PM on July 14, 2008

This looks dead-on, @beagle. Thanks for the answer.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 8:09 AM on June 24, 2008

Thanks! The power of the MeFi foo is strong...
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 10:18 AM on June 16, 2008

I've put the project up on MeFi Projects, which has been really cool so far. Thanks for reminding me of the link that had been hiding 300 pixels away from my face for so long :) The project is here. To save you the trip, it's a universal wishlist app with RSS and other goodies. Thanks for all the input so far!
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 8:06 PM on June 4, 2008

Can they do that, though? I mean, they were in your parents home. It's not as if this happened on the street, and the dog was unleashed and running wild. I say give this visitor a Target gift card for some new pants and move on.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 8:01 PM on June 4, 2008

Hmm. I guess if time were a factor I'd stick with something off-the-shelf. I'd avoid the nightmare of Moveable Type and skip ahead to WordPress, which is really nice and quite robust if you "harden" the underlying database before you go and get yourself Dugg or Farked.

But, speaking as devil's advocate, I coded a blogging system several years ago as a way to learn a new language and found it to be really fun and rewarding. In the end I had something I could say... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 12:39 PM on June 4, 2008

Thanks for the input, all.

@beerbajay: I actually rode some really nice offroad bikes that were setup as singlespeed, because that's what I initially wanted. One Gary Fisher was especially nice. Since singles and fixies are so hip now manufacturers are demanding a big premium, and I have no use for a hipness tax.

@polyglot: That's the reason I got the bike. But since I have no immediately replaceable mechanical components, I figured I start with... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 6:49 AM on May 23, 2008

I used to run to a soundtrack of A Tribe Called Quest (The Low End Theory, mostly) and the Beastie Boys (Paul's Boutique.) Both are "upbeat", I guess, and the lyrics in the Tribe stuff are really smart and clever, which gave me something to focus on other than my knees ;)
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 9:42 PM on May 22, 2008

I have only peripheral knowledge about how this works, as my wife is in the midst of doing this very thing. We live in coastal NC, but she commutes to Norfolk, VA every fifth week to do her training for two days. This is apparently one way to take the training you need for certification—a little bit at a time. Her alternative was to do all six weeks of training in one fell swoop, which wasn't going to work out with a full time teaching position.

My wife looked at some... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 8:44 PM on May 22, 2008

My wife and I are doing the same search right now, so I'll be watching this thread. It's between a (used) Prius and the Honda Fit right now. The Fit gets great mileage, and I've heard the build quality is slightly above the Nissan. I like the idea of the Matrix, but it's got to be one of the ugliest cars on the road; it looks like it was designed with one particular angle in mind, and from any other it's misshapen and odd looking. However, the Pontiac Vibe is the... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 12:32 PM on May 9, 2008

The Rosebuds, Velocity Girl.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 9:47 AM on May 2, 2008

"High Fidelity" is a great novel with a very endearing relationship between two complex, well drawn characters. I still love it despite the movie version having almost none of the charm of the book, even with Cusack and Jack Black doing their best.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 7:01 AM on April 21, 2008

Yeah, this non-socialized medicine we get to have cause we live 'Merica sure is awesome. Please sue this doctor. I don't know exactly what condition you were diagnosed with—although I assume it wasn't extremely life-threatening; but what if it had been? Write the medical board in your city, etc. Do what you have to. This person doesn't need to be practicing. Good luck!
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 8:34 AM on April 16, 2008

Even though I haven't ordered anything in ages, I loves me some Veer.As long as your on their mailing list they send you all sorts of cool freebies all throughout the year. I once got a huge puzzle, the image on which was a forties pulp novel cover sendup made from the stock photos they sell.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 11:42 AM on April 1, 2008

Use hamburger with a good bit of fat in it. Sorry, just the way it is. Meat loaf ain't health food. Forget the breadcrumbs and use rolled oats. Put an egg in there, a brown one if you can get them. Put some bacon on top to both seal in moisture and add some additional moisture as it cooks and renders. And for the love of all that is holy, just use ketchup.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 11:40 AM on April 1, 2008

Xtreme - Stop The World
(I want that 'Master Of Eighties Cheese" award you're all afraid of winning.)
Frank Black - Hang Onto Your Ego
Strange Loop - Liz Phair sorta fits the bill.
Disconnect The Dots - Of Montreal

That's all that spring to mind for me. I can think of so many more that start with a unique "B" section that's never used elsewhere in the song, like 9-9 by R.E.M.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 9:03 PM on March 31, 2008

What, no Guided By Voices yet? Sheesh. Heathens.

Echoes Myron
The Closets Of Henry
Bulldog Skin
Motor Away

Take your pick. Pop gems, all. Not gonna be on cereals commercials.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 7:09 AM on March 28, 2008

I second (or third, or fourth) the cork floor in the kitchen. We spend a good amount of time in there, and were its floor covered in slate like our entry way I would surely eat nothing but take out. Slate hurts your feet and back and it's always cold. Cork, not so much. It's springy and it likes you.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 12:56 PM on March 24, 2008

Well, only some of the pictures are taken in people's rooms but The Mirror Project is a pretty good example of this kind of thing. Super clean UI, and it's been around forever so it's a good example of something of this type that is sustainable.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 8:18 AM on March 21, 2008

Drupal does multiple sites. My love/hate for Drupal is well known. YMMV.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 7:22 PM on March 20, 2008

My wife just picked up a Macbook, and listening to it side by side with my MBP I'm actually inclined to say hers sounds a good bit better than mine. It's quieter, to be sure, but much clearer. I have no idea if the polycarbonate is "flatter" in terms of resonance than aluminum, but the audio just sounds "truer" somehow. My MBP is 10 months old or so, in the spirit of full disclosure. One of the bleeding edge models may be different.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 6:25 PM on March 20, 2008

All this "too soon" stuff is completely subjective, IMO. I started dating the person who is now my wife about three months after getting out of a really long relationship. And in all honesty, the time between our previous relationships was never an issue at all. People like to say, "I need time" and those sorts of things; my question is always "time for what?" Are you over the last person or aren't you? This stuff is so much simpler than we give it credit for being.... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 3:50 PM on March 20, 2008

I like canine epigram's second suggestion. There are a lot of people who might read the "backing off" in a different way than it was intended. LN's suggestion is good, too. I think we so often get off on the wrong foot because we don't just *say* stuff. Hoop jumping and tests are silly. Good luck!
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 10:13 AM on March 20, 2008

I love you all. I've even discovered bits of it on the 'Tube. Many thanks! I can sleep now!
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 1:41 PM on March 18, 2008

Possibly a step in the right direction? There's lots to sort through, many of which might be what you're after.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 1:37 PM on March 18, 2008

Might want to have a look at this thread from some time back. A lot of good suggestions there, as well as some gotchas about Drupal. I'd steer clear of Drupal unless you're really ready to invest some time. Sounds like WordPress with a heavily modded theme might suit you best. YMMV, of course.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 6:26 AM on March 17, 2008

(My quip to dreamphone read meaner than it was meant to be, by the way. The tubes doesn't do sarcasm...) And thanks, maudlin. Good stuff.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 8:48 AM on March 10, 2008

I've got a '98 Subaru (non-Outback) Legacy that I love. I commute with it, about 50 miles, every day and get very reasonable gas mileage; it's very comfortable and has some oomph where it counts, and it's got this sort of rugged, sort of nimble feel to it when it drives. Great little car, can be had for well under $6k. Newer will, of course, be more. (And if you commute, Sirius radio is a very worthwhile add-on.)
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 10:30 AM on March 8, 2008

@caution live frogs: Thanks for the thorough answer! I'm in Elizabeth City now actually. And here I thought the interwebs were so vast. Odd we never bumped into each other, or did and never knew. Cheers.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 1:56 PM on February 27, 2008

[snark]There's this website called eBay...[/snark] Seriously, the Zune is a joke. Sell it and use the cash toward a newer iPod, if you desire, or an iTunes card for some music or movies. Nothing I've read about the Zune, even from places that are usually very MS friendly, has anything nice to say.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 1:02 PM on February 25, 2008

After moving here from DC, my wife and I found the dining to be a bit limited. (Don't mean to sound snooty, but hey—it's DC.) We've found a few good places though. Imperio Inca on Colley in Norfolk is great, offering lots of very unique and fresh Peruvian dishes. The ceviche is fantastic, and the lomo and pollo saltado are both delicious. Interestingly, there's a good Thai place across the street called Siam 21; they have above average pho, and average larb gai. I think most of our other... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 7:58 AM on February 25, 2008

@that girl: Those curtains are great! I might just buy them as is. And thanks to you all for your excellent suggestions. I want to give you all little check marks.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 10:40 AM on February 19, 2008

@that girl: I noticed, long after I'd made a dork of myself, that those were not curtains and were in fact the RAW MATERIALS curtains are made of! Mea culpa, thanks for the pointer and I am now going to mail a seamstress friend and beg for my new curtains!
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 7:47 PM on February 19, 2008

XTC - Nonsuch
Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream
REM - Murmur
The first four Bjork albums.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 5:44 PM on February 17, 2008

I'd say get him a Macbook with GarageBand and lots of RAM, and maybe a couple of external hard drives to hold the source tracks and mp3s he'll generate. Some decent studio monitors can be had for not a whole lot—no link handy, but $200 will get you a decent set from Sony. All told, I think you could build a really nice Mac-centered music production system for $1850 or so.
When I picked up the guitar at his age—then piano, and bass, and drums—I would have killed for all the stuff... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 12:16 PM on February 15, 2008

Harry Shearer uses some of this stuff when he "Reads the Trades" on Le Show—with the pizzicato violins and the like. I've been trying forever to find out what the song he uses is called. John K. used to use the same genre on "Ren & Stimpy" all the time. I think "Space Age Bachelor Pad" is close, but not a direct hit.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 11:26 AM on February 13, 2008

We just moved a major newspaper website to Drupal, one of only eight or so in the US that has done so. The process has been challenging at best and painful at worst. There is no single way to do anything in Drupal. It's overly complex, exhaustingly confining, and even one of its lead developers couldn't answer some of our questions regarding implementation. Our devs have resorted in many cases to a lot of hacking, some of it in core modules, to implement even basic blogging and comment... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 9:40 AM on February 12, 2008

"And I Love Her" by the Beatles. The original version is great of course, but there's a super version on this. I've played guitar for a very long time, but I can say with confidence that any intermediate player could pick it up with a few listens and some good tablature. Good luck!
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 8:58 AM on February 4, 2008

Barbara Kruger it is. Thanks all!
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 12:56 PM on January 29, 2008

Hm. I'm 29 and an atheist, and when I lived in DC I went to a supremely expensive gym on the Hill. I was *very* overweight for my frame (5' 9", 325lbs~), and shy about being in a gym, worried about screwing things up and being a laughing stock. I must say that aside from the price, things went well there, and I started to rapidly lose weight and feel lots better.
When my (now) wife and I moved to a very small town in North Carolina, we were looking for a gym and only found the... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 1:35 PM on January 24, 2008

It's definitely a T6. You can get one from Lowes, made by Kobalt but it comes in a kit with lots of other tools. You could also go to your local computer shop ( you know, the place with the $12 ethernet cards and tacky "gamer" style PC cases) and get one for about $8. Good luck!
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 1:26 PM on January 15, 2008

Sorry, all. Typed 6, meant 8. Admiral Haddock is right. Sending my resignation to the expert typists club now.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 1:38 PM on January 15, 2008

I recently built myself a desktop for use with some Ikea Vika legs. I use the term "built" very loosely, because what I actually did was buy a nice piece of MDF, vut it down, and attach it with the hardware provided.

The MDF is exceptionally straight and great at holding the weight of my laptop, hard drives, monitors and a lamp. I would, however, recommend sealing or otherwise finishing MDF if you use it; little strands of it tend to work loose and can feel... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 4:27 PM on January 9, 2008

Congrats on your pending nuptials!

My wife and I elected not to write ours, and it's one of the things I definitely do not regret about our wedding day. You're going to have a lot to worry about; you're going to be hungry and tired all day and there's probably a million other things you need to memorize (like the names of all the relatives on her side you haven't met yet, or the location of the bathroom). Writing your own vows means either adding another thing to that... [more]
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 8:05 AM on December 20, 2007

You could always hit an Apple store on a Friday night. The ones in DC and Chicago are both pretty hot meeting spots for geeks and hipsters alike.
posted to Ask Metafilter by littlerobothead at 12:09 PM on December 17, 2007