“Republicans Look to Harvest Amish Vote” - AP I can see U.S. 250 near Wooster, Ohio now, packed with buggies heading towards the polling places on Election Day. :)

Possibly as an antidote to the mind-altering tedium that is the working world, Lorrie and I decided to watch three documentaries on DVD over the weekend: The Kid Stays in the Picture Very good. Based on the book by the same name, the documentary tells the rise, fall, and rise again — sort of — of Robert Evans, possibly the movie industry’s most influential producer during the Seventies ( The Godfather, Love Story, Rosemary’s Baby, etc., etc., etc.). Since the movie is narrated by him, and the story is told completely from his perspective, part of the fascination is how much could possibly be real. However, no matter what, it’s a great Hollywood story. ...

Went to the Sarah McLachlan concert in Raleigh Friday evening. While we’re both fans, neither of us had seen her in person before now, and I was a little worried about how the whole singer/songwriter thing would come off in an arena (the RBC Center…or Centre, since RBC stands for Royal Bank of Canada). Of course, I had forgotten that Sarah is Big in Canada™, and that usually means Good Live, no matter where you see the act. (Think Rush.) The RBC Center is a good venue for that sort of concert — it was built recently to house hockey and basketball, meaning the seats would need to be fairly close to the court area. She hit the usual hits, as well as a fair amount of material from the latest album, much as one would expect, and the crowd was really into it. We got two encores, one that was probably planned and one that perhaps was not. (Oddly enough, someone threw a broken lighter up onstage during the concert. I’m not sure what that was about. Those floor tickets were too expensive to buy just to show up and throw hard objects.) ...

Yesterday was the 35th anniversary of one of humankind’s defining achievements. Amazing how far away it seems now.

Good list from McSweeney’s. I want to hear “How Are We Going to Get These Dogs Back In?”, but I know I’ll just hear it played too often and hate it.

Amazon.com has a new feature called a plog — product weblog — that informs you of various new items based on items you have already bought. It’s an interesting idea, but not too different from what they already did, and some of the recommendations seem a little off somehow. This is the strangest one so far: Nanch Drew: The Secret of Shadow Ranch was released today; We thought you’d be interested because you rated Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind Game Of The Year Edition. From the Manufacturer: Saddle up as super-sleuth Nancy Drew for a trip out west to the Shadow Ranch in Arizona. A phantom horse is terrorizing the ranch, leaving a trail of frightening “accidents.” Local legend says the horse has come to avenge the hanging of its master, and that misfortune will befall whoever sets eyes on it. The mysterious horse tramples all hope of a restful ranch vacation for you, as Nancy Drew. Is it a four-legged spirit from a tragic love story or is there a sinister scheme lurking in the shadows of the saguaro cacti? You must divine the truth from the ghost stories quickly, and question everyone you meet. Don’t expect a straight answer from anyone. In this high-stakes game everyone seems to be wagering that you’ll be gone before sundown.An interactive mystery-adventure game, Nancy Drew: The Secret of Shadow Ranch puts players in the shoes of teenage super-sleuth Nancy Drew as she investigates a string of mysterious events on Shadow Ranch and in the desert and canyon lands that surround it.Features:A thrilling western adventure; complete with roping, riding, and romance All-new interface features a larger game window, increasing the sense of realism and adventure Based on the best-selling Nancy Drew book of all time— The Secret of Shadow Ranch—a favorite with generations of readers Assume the role of Nancy Drew, girl detective Up-close interaction with horses and other ranch animals; saddle up and ride your very own horse, and go barrel-racing Explore incredibly lifelike Arizona ranchlands, complete with ghost towns, ranch buildings, canyons, and wide-open spaces 20+ hours of thrilling game play as you search for clues and interview suspects Call for hints, get e-mail, and surf the Web on your in-game cell phone Solve the mystery on your own or team up with family and friends New puzzles that tie directly to storyline and give important cluesBuilt-in game hints, but only if you want them Two difficulty settings, Junior and Senior Detective, so both experienced and new detectives can have…read more. ...

Hmm, one of those long periods of time between posts…told myself I wouldn’t do that. Oh well, I’ll just say I’ve been busy. :) For now, HULK BLOG!!!

Space probe Cassini is going into orbit around Saturn this evening. It has been travelling for close to seven years to get there. In December, the Huygens space probe it has been carrying along for the ride will take off for a landing on Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, which appears to have an atmosphere and oceans of some sort. Cassini is one of the last relics of NASA from before the “Faster, Better, Cheaper” era, and as a result is a big, nuclear-powered – through radioisotope decay – Cadillac of space probes. Wonder if future missions will start looking like that, now that we have the “Moon, then Mars” agenda? :) ...

My first computer was a Commodore 64, so, like a lot of folks my age, I feel sort of proprietary about the Commodore name, even though the company went out of business years ago. That being said, I’m not sure how I feel about this digital music player, named after the VIC-20. Keeps the name out there, but I guess I would like it better if it wasn’t called the “e”-Vic. The C64 joystick should be neat, though. Too bad they probably won’t include Conflict in Vietnam. ...

If you are a member of Congress, and someone hands you a crown, put it down and leave. (After determining it isn’t meant for you, of course.) :) Courtesy of The New York Times (free registration required)