Positive

Lia tested positive today! Whew.

What a huge relief.

Mountain Bike Trails on Google Earth/Maps

Ever since I got my GPS unit I've been tracing all my tracks through the backwoods on the bike. I figured out you can post your tracks on Google Earth and Google Maps. Now I have profiles in both places. Pretty Sweet.

Here's the trail network in Flag that I've hit so far, and below that, the area in Sedona I've done with the GPS, which is only the stuff around Cathedral Rock. I gotta get out and do more riding!


View Larger Map


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X equals two to the Nth

We implanted three "A" grade embryos out of our batch of 19. They were perfect: 8 cells, no fragments, still growing. It turns out each cell divides once a day, and we stuck 'em in on day three, so 8 or more cells is perfect (hence the awesome equation I derived all by myself).

Lia has to sit on the couch for a day, and then take some more drugs, then we get a preggo test on the 30th to see if they stick. I say "they" meaning one or two. Not all three!

This T-shirt from the XKCD store will be the first item of baby clothing we will buy when this is all over:


I don't think they sell it in a onesie. He, or she, or they, will have to grow into it.

There were four other embryos that were "B"s and still growing. So Dr. Patel (a skinnier, more Indian version of my brother-in-law Ernesto: super smart and totally awesome, and catches me off-guard a lot with random jokes) said we could freeze those if in a few days they grow up to be "A"s.

So if you are a radical fundamentalist, and you're keeping score, we have committed at least 14 acts of "murder" in the course of having one kid. That's from the two we didn't implant last time and the 12 we didn't implant or freeze this time. I just want to point that out for everyone at home.

Guess what? I feel great about the whole thing, because until we get something that actually poops, I pretty much don't care. We'll do some stem cell research with the rest.

We're stoked, eh!

IVF Round 2

Lia and I have 19 babies growing in Scottsdale right now, so things are looking even better than last time, and last time our numbers weren't too shabby. We have an excellent chance of having some RoarkSpawn soon. We'll implant this weekend at the latest.

It was a little painful for Lia over the last few days, and then have the procedure on Monday, but she recovered faster than last time and now I'd say she's 90%, with a little discomfort now and then (we both went to work today). The implant will be a little uncomfortable, but it's all for a purpose.

Space Tourism is Coming

PopSci had a little blurb on WhiteKnightTwo. It's good these guys are still up and running after their mishap last year.

Why do they go after Mumbai?

A Bombay (Mumbai) native asks why the city was attacked. The answer is the same as it always is: democracy, whiskey, sexy!

Why do they go after Mumbai? There’s something about this island-state that appalls religious extremists, Hindus and Muslims alike. Perhaps because Mumbai stands for lucre, profane dreams and an indiscriminate openness.

...

From the street food vendor squatting on a sidewalk, fiercely guarding his little business, to the tycoons and their dreams of acquiring Hollywood, this city understands money and has no guilt about the getting and spending of it.

He has a reaction to this attack that is very similar to the one I had after 9/11. When everyone else was talking about building little, short, squat buildings in the place of WTC 1 and 2, I was hoping for something not 110 stories, but 111 stories right back in the same place. Paint a big middle finger on it with an AA battery at the top and we got a deal.

...the best answer to the terrorists is to dream bigger, make even more money, and visit Mumbai more than ever. Dream of making a good home for all Mumbaikars, not just the denizens of $500-a-night hotel rooms...of clean running water, humane mass transit, better toilets, a responsive government. Make a killing not in God’s name but in the stock market, and then turn up the forbidden music and dance; work hard and party harder.

By the way, I remember the middle finger being Lia's idea.

Louis CK: Everything's amazing, and nobody's happy

Heh. He's right, but I gotta cop to complaining about flying. I think it's because it's actually WORSE than when I was a kid.

Stupid shoe-bomber.

Rumsfeld: Surge in Afghanistan

Rummy thinks since the surge worked in Iraq, it can in Afghanistan too. But...

What’s needed in Afghanistan is an Afghan solution, just as Iraqi solutions have contributed so fundamentally to progress in Iraq. And a surge, if it is to be successful, will need to be an Afghan surge.

...

Additional troops in Afghanistan may be necessary, but they will not, by themselves, be sufficient to lead to the results we saw in Iraq. A similar confluence of events that contributed to success in Iraq does not appear to exist in Afghanistan.

The size of the country, the number of domestic security forces, the kind of economy, are all different than Iraq. Throw in some poppy fields and some Pakistani Taliban, and it's a whole different ballgame.

But he's positive:

The singular trait of the American way of war is the remarkable ability of our military to advance, absorb setbacks, adapt and ultimately triumph based upon the unique circumstances of a given campaign. Thus it has been throughout our history. And thus it will be in Iraq and Afghanistan, if we have the patience and wisdom to learn from our successes, and if our leaders have the wherewithal to persevere even when it is not popular to do so.

Chain Surfing

Dunno. Looks real. That's talent if it is...

The War is Over and We Won

Michael Yon (an ex-special forces embedded writer, reporter, blogger, etc.) tells Instapundit that The War is Over and We Won.

Zombie is declaring November 22 as VI Day.

IVF Status

By now, most everyone we know is aware that Lia and I took a trip to IVF land, but it didn't work, so we have to do it again. It seems like everyone who does it has to do it twice. Our doctor said everything was pretty textbook up until the last minute, so he expected it to go well. There is a lot to the process, though, and sometimes the statistics just don't stack up right.

So we'll give it another try. This time the doctor will be a little more aggressive with one of the drugs Lia took last time, since she handled it pretty well. Pretty much everything else will be the same, since on paper, it looked good.

One more shot. Wish us luck.

Pictures from Copenhagen

Finally! It took me a while to get these off Lia's Super-Camera. Click on any of these to ENLARGE them.

First of all, EVERYBODY bikes in Copenhagen, and Denmark in general. But in reality, it's not just because they're eco-conscious, or because no-one can afford a car (both of which are somewhat true). It's also because the terrain allows it. Practically the entire city of Copenhagen can be found between the elevations of 10 to 30 ft above seal level.

This is actually a shot in Malmo Sweden, across the Baltic from Copenhagen. But it's pretty typical of the piles and piles of bikes that are parked everywhere: bus stations, grocery stores, the ferry, etc. If you look close, you can find me in the picture among the bikes.




Seriously, there are bikes everywhere. There are like 1 million people in the urban area, but I'm pretty sure I saw 5 million bikes the whole time we were there. It makes sense. Driving, parking, paying for gas and a rental car are all a pain when you visit another city. The fact that it's so amenable to get around on a bike make it pretty easy to visit this city. And it suits Lia and I anyway. I got to practice my track stand at all the red lights.

Sites Around the City

Here's a view from the top of the Rundetarn, a lookout tower in the middle of downtown. Looking southwest, the building in the foreground is Vor Frue Kirke (kirke = church).


The Radhus (City Hall), from Radhuspladsen (City Hall Plaza)

There are several huge chunks of land set aside for gardens and parks, too. This pic doesn't do it justice but this is a shot of Rosenberg Have (have = park)


This is Kongens Nytorv (kongen= king, torv = square, ny = new - and prounounced exactly the same), basically a roundabout at a major intersection in town.


Christiansborg Slot

Christiansborg is the fifth palace to stand on the site called Slotsholmen (slot = palace). Slotsholmen was the original site where Copenhagen was founded by Bishop Absalon. They put a fort there for protection, it grew into a castle. Then a bunch of Germans got pissed off and tore the place down. They actually went out of their way to hire STONE CUTTERS to demolish the structure brick by brick! Then later another palace was built there, and it grew up and was a pretty big place by the 1700's when King Christian VI decided to tear the place down and build Christiansborg I. That burned down by the end of the 1700's, so they built Christiansborg II. That burned down at the end of the 1800's, so they built Christiansborg III, which is what stands today. Hmmm, let's see, about every 100 years...


Lia at Christiansborg Palace with her supersweet cruiser.


This is a picture of the actual ruins below the palace, which have remnants of both Absalon's castle and the first Copenhagen Castle.


Kastellet
This a fortress on the coast in the middle of town. There are still military training grounds there.

Me on my super-sweet cruiser bike.













The Tivoli
In the suburb of Vesterbro, there's a round-the-clock carnival called Tivoli. We managed to get there the night before they closed it down to decorate for Christmas. There are stages for plays and whatnot, rides, restaurants, and of course, the ever present hot dog stands that are everywhere in Copenhagen.






A view from the middle of Tivoli park looking Northeast towards city hall.

A big band plays in the gazebo.

The design for this restaurant inside Tivoli was the idea of chemist Niels Bohr.

An artistic shot by Lia of some lanterns in a...uh...lantern aquarium, apparently.



More from Malmo, Sweden







This is probably what I looked like in college, studying Kinematics in the local pub over a pint of Guinness, except that's not what this is. This pub is in Sweden, the Guinness cost $8, I have less hair, and I'm not studying engineering, but looking at a map trying to figure out where the heck we are.


Other stuff with a story that doesn't have a picture:

• The Absolut Ice Bar and all the Swedish girls.
• Dinner at The Paul (super-nice restaurant inside Tivoli) with all the Gore folk.
• Losing my luggage because United sucks, and SAS rules!
• My relief upon getting out of the suburb of Vesterbro for the first time and realizing that not all Cope's are insane punk weirdos with pointy shoes.
• The visit to the M.C. Escher exhibit in the remote northern town of Holte, and our Hike from Hell.
• Mountain biking with Arne, my guide from Skovbrynet (not pronounced at all like it looks).
• Christiania: the socialist experiment that turned into a unattractive jobless punk hangout.
  

No Whining

Over the last 8 years we've had to listen to a lot of rabid hate about G-Dub. And it reached a climax 4 years ago. Remember this craphole of a website? Whatever you might think about the outgoing CINC (and I had some problems with him), I don't think it's worth polluting the air and stinking up the place with vapid conspiracy theories and venomous rage because you didn't get your way.

There were a lot of "Not MY President" bumper stickers floating around or other nonsense that seemed to say more about the crybabies who bought them than the person they were targeting. (Guess what buddy? He IS your president no matter how much you complain!)

Ace of Spades has a good roundup of some of the old stuff that some people still remember, and a link to a new site that has sickly sweet messages "From 52 to 48."

This time around, hopefully the "48" don't resort to the same jack-assery that we saw after the last presidential election. It feels good to take the high road, even though you remember a time when others in your position didn't.

Of course, "No Whining" doesn't mean avoiding criticism, mockery, well-structured complaining, and good old sarcasm every once in a while. Hilarity ensues when you follow your most base, animal instinct like Frank at IMAO: The New Direction. I gotta say, I'll never call myself a conservative, but that doesn't mean I don't like Awesomeness and Kick-Assery.

Steal This Comic

XKCD is probably my new favorite website at this point. Lots of witty sarcasm, science, and social commentary. (Click to Enlarge)

The Onion: Comedic Genius

Obama Win Causes Obsessive Supporters To Realize How Empty Their Lives Are

Cory Miller's Letter

Posted several places around the internet in the last few days. Pretty inspiring actually.

I am a 54-year-old high school graduate. I didn’t go to college like you, I was too ready to go “conquer the world” when I finished high school. 25 years ago at age 29, I started my own water well drilling business at a time when the economy here in East Texas was in a tailspin from the crash of the early 80’s oil boom. I didn’t get any help from the government, nor did I look for any. I borrowed what I could from my sister, my uncle, and even the pawnshop and managed to scrape together a homemade drill rig and a few tools to do my first job. My businesses did not start not a result of privilege. It is the result of my personal drive, personal ambition, self-discipline, self reliance, and a determination to treat my customers fairly.

...

You see, Mr. Obama, I’m the guy you intend to raise taxes on. I’m the guy who has spent 25 years toiling and sweating, fretting and fighting, stressing and risking, to build a business and get ahead. I’m the guy who has been on the very edge of bankruptcy more than a dozen times over the last 25 years, and all the while creating more and more jobs for East Texans who didn’t want to take a risk, and wouldn’t demand from themselves what I have demanded from myself. I’m the guy you characterize as “the Americans who can afford it the most” that you believe should be taxed more to provide income redistribution “to spread the wealth” to those who have never toiled, sweated, fretted, fought, stressed, or risked anything. You want to characterize me as someone who has enjoyed a life of privilege and who needs to pay a higher percentage of my income than those who have bought into your entitlement culture. I resent you, Mr. Obama, as I resent all who want to use class warfare as a tool to advance their political career. What’s worse, each year more Americans buy into your liberal entitlement culture, and turn to the government for their hope of a better life instead of themselves. Liberals are succeeding through more than 40 years of collaborative effort between the predominant liberal media, and liberal indoctrination programs in the public school systems across our land.

...

Cory Miller

just a ordinary, extraordinary American, the way a lot of Americans used to be.

P.S. Yes, Mr. Obama, I am a real American… www.cmillerdrilling.com

First Election Day Post

Uh, Oh.